Quebec COVID-19 cases soar with 1,171 new infections on Saturday, most since April
For the second day in a row, Quebec reported over 1,000 new COVID-19 cases when the health ministry said 1,171 more people have tested positive for the virus.
It is the highest daily increase in cases since April 30 when the Quebec Institute of Public Health (INSPQ) reported the same number of new cases.
Of the new cases, 714 people were unvaccinated, 12 received one dose of vaccine more than 14 days prior and 445 were double-vaxxed more than seven days prior to testing positive.
The health ministry says you are 3.7 times more likely to test positive for COVID-19 if you are not vaccinated and 1.7 times more likely if you've received one dose.
There are currently 667 active outbreaks of the novel coronavirus.
The province also recorded three new deaths and hospitalizations dropped by one.
Of the 20 patients who checked into Quebec hospitals for COVID-19 treatment, seven were unvaccinated and 13 received both doses of vaccine more than seven days prior to checking into the hospital. There are five more people in intensive care wards than there were 24 hours for a total of 48.
WHY THE RISE IN CASES
Infectious disease specialist Dr. Matthew Oughton said there are several potential reasons for the sudden rise in cases.
The first contributor is the drop in temperature making it easier for the virus to transmit.
"We've seen this happen last winter as well," said Oughton. "Colder weather means people spending more time indoors with poorer ventilation and probably more time closer together indoors with improper ventilation equals easier transmission."
In addition, Oughton cited recent research that shows a gradual waning protection against all infections for those who have been double vaccinated.
"What we're seeing is that over time is that people who are fully vaccinated start to become more likely to get a new infection or what they call a breakthrough infection, however, the breakthrough infections are typically not severe infections," he said. "Even though there are cases, they tend to overwhelmingly be mild cases."
This point is highlighted by the rise in new cases, but stable numbers of hospitalizations and deaths due to the virus. For example, on Nov. 27, 2020, Quebec reported 1,269 new COVID-19 cases with 38 more deaths. In addition, there were 669 people in Quebec hospitals with 90 of those in intensive care wards.
"If you look at the proportion of all cases to severe disease now compared to all cases to severe disease a year ago before we started vaccinating, it's very clear that there are proportionally much fewer cases of severe disease and the severe diseases we're seeing is in those that are not fully vaccinated," said Oughton.
VACCINATION CAMPAIGN
Quebec's vaccination rate remains at 84 per cent for those who have received a first dose, and 81 per cent for those who have received both doses.
Health-care professionals administered 14,057 more doses to children aged five to 11 received, and there are now 29,876 in that age group who have got their first jab.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.