MONTREAL -- Quebec reported Saturday that 1,106 more people tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours bringing the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic to 343,794.

The seven-day case increase average is now 1,169, and the Quebec Institute of Public Health (INSPQ) is reporting 11,258 active COVID-19 cases in the province, which is 268 fewer than on Friday.

Of the total cases, 321,667 are reported to have recovered, an increase of 1,365 since Friday.

The province also added 13 more deaths due to the disease, including three in the past 24 hours, seven between April 17 and April 22, and three before April 17.

Since the pandemic began, Quebec has reported 10,869 deaths due to COVID-19 after four were removed from the overall total after investigations determined the cause of death was not related to the novel coronavirus.

Hospitalizations in Quebec dropped by 22 on Saturday. There are now 662 patients receiving care for COVID-19 in the province's hospitals. Of those, 181 people are in intensive care wards, an increase of nine.

On April 22, 40,928 samples were analyzed.

VACCINATION CAMPAIGN

After breaking records for dose numbers this week, the province reported that 82,080 more vaccine doses were administered in the past 24 hours and 1,548 before April 23, bringing the total number of people who have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose to 2,763,535. 

Of those, 49,110 people have received their second dose of vaccine.

That number equates to 32 per cent of Quebec's population.

VARIANT CASES

Quebec added 822 presumptive variant cases Saturday bringing the total number of presumed cases to 26,585, which is 80.9 per cent of the positive COVID-19 cases in the past week.

Of those, 3,574 positive cases are confirmed to be variants of the novel coronavirus.

REGIONAL BREAKDOWN

Montreal reported the highest number of new cases with 291 more reported Saturday (123,758 total). However, Montreal has only topped 300 new cases once in the past week. 

Other high increases were reported in Chaudiere-Appalaches (146 new, 16,094 total), Quebec City (139 new, 30,469 total), Monteregie (139 new, 47,453 total) and Outaouais (96 new, 10,887 total).

Two deaths were reported in Quebec City (1,066 total), Outaouais (191 total) and Chaudiere-Appalaches (312 total), and one death was reported in Mauricie-et-Centre-du-Quebec (510 total), Montreal (4,668 total), Lanaudiere (508 total), the Laurentians (496 total) and Monteregie (1,529 total).