Active COVID-19 cases in Quebec dip below 5,000 for first time since end of August
For the first time since the end of August, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Quebec dipped below 5,000 and the number of new daily cases continues to trend low.
On Tuesday, Quebec's public health institute (INSPQ) reported 4,907 active cases across the province. The last time they were this low was on Aug. 31 when there were 4,992 active cases.
The province also added 409 new infections in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 416,676 since March 2020.
Of the 409 new cases, 263 (64 per cent) are people who have not received two vaccine doses, while 146 are people who got their second shot more than seven days ago.
Two more people have died from COVID-19, bringing the total to 11,422 since the start of the pandemic; 400,347 people have recovered from the virus.
Hospitalizations remain mostly steady, with 17 new admissions and 16 discharges, resulting in an increase of one patient in the last 24 hours and a total of 291 hospitalizations.
Among the 17 new admissions, 13 (76 per cent) are people who don't have two shots of a vaccine, while four are people who got their two jabs more than seven days ago.
The number of people in the ICU dropped by six, with 72 people total in the intensive care.
Health officials analyzed 19,840 samples on Oct. 10 and the province is reporting a positivity rate of 2.1 per cent.
VACCINE COVERAGE
Quebec health care workers administered 4,731 vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, for a total of 13,033,734 doses given out in Quebec.
As of Tuesday, health workers have administered 6,728,567 first doses of a vaccine, which covers 78 per cent of the entire population of Quebec, or 90 per cent of the population eligible to receive a vaccine (12 years old and up).
For second doses, 6,395,449 people have been vaccinated, which covers 74 per cent of the entire population, or 85 per cent of people aged 12 and up.
VARIANT TRACKER
In the last 24 hours, 230 more cases of the Delta variant were identified in Quebec, bringing the total number of confirmed and presumptive cases to 27,714.
According to INSPQ, there are 4,299 confirmed Delta cases in the province.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A step forward': New screening criteria for sperm donors takes effect
Canadians looking to grow their families with the assistance of sperm or egg donations should soon have more options for donors as the federal health agency does away with longstanding restrictions criticized as discriminatory.
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.
Ontario Provincial Police arrest 64 suspects in child sexual exploitation investigation
Ontario Provincial Police say 64 suspects are facing a combined 348 charges in connection with a series of child sexual exploitation investigations that spanned the province.
'Summer of discontent': Federal unions vow to fight new 3-day a week office mandate
Federal unions are launching legal challenges and encouraging public sector workers to file "tens of thousands" of grievances over the new mandate requiring federal workers to return to the office at least three days a week in the fall.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10,000 Zantac lawsuits in U.S.: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Watch fighter jet pilots pummel fake enemy ship off coast of Philippines
The United States and Philippines held annual joint-training drills just off the Southeast Asian nation’s western coast on Wednesday. Military forces sunk a 'mock' enemy warship – the BRP Lake Caliraya, which was a decommissioned tanker made in China.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his head more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
'Ozempic babies': Reports of surprise pregnancies raise new questions about weight loss drugs
Numerous women have shared stories of 'Ozempic babies' on social media. But the joy some experience in discovering pregnancies may come with anxiety about the unknowns.
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs to start for Canucks in Game 1 vs. Oilers
Rookie goalie Arturs Silovs will start in net for the Canucks as Vancouver kicks off a second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers Wednesday night.