Ontario’s new COVID-19 cases drop below 1,000

Ontario’s daily COVID-19 case count has fallen below 1,000 for the first time in three days.

According to provincial health officials, 887 new infections were reported on Monday along with three additional deaths.

The province conducted 25,981 tests over the past 24 hours with a test positivity rate of 3.5 per cent.

Of the new cases, 397 are in people who are not fully vaccinated, while 64 are in those who have an unknown vaccine status.

In a tweet, Health Minister Christine Elliott said 137 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, and 168 patients are in ICU. However, she noted that not all hospitals report on the weekend.

So far, more than 90 per cent of Ontarians aged 12 and up have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and over 87 per cent are fully vaccinated. Elliott said 21 per cent of children aged five to 11 have received a dose of the pediatric vaccine.

On Sunday, the province reported its highest single-day total of new COVID-19 cases in more than six months, with 1,184 new infections.

Meanwhile, as COVID-19 cases surge in the Windsor-Essex region, the medical officer of health has reduced gathering limits to a maximum of 10 people indoors and a maximum of 25 people outdoors.

In a letter issued Sunday, Dr. Shanker Nesathurai also encouraged residents to work from home. Capacity limits at restaurants and bars in Windsor will also be limited to 50 per cent indoors.

The additional measures will take effect on Friday at 12:01 a.m. and remain in replace until further notice.

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With files from The Canadian Press