Ontario government reports another slight drop in new COVID-19 cases
Posted December 21, 2021 9:17 am.
Last Updated December 21, 2021 12:09 pm.
For the second day in a row, the Ontario government is reporting another slight drop in COVID-19 cases.
According to data released Tuesday morning, there were 3,453 new cases across Ontario. The day before saw 3,784 new confirmed infections and on Sunday there were 4,177 cases, which at the time was the highest daily count seen since April 23.
The government also advised 11 more people have died of the virus, bringing the total to 10,123.
There were also 1,332 cases deemed resolved on Tuesday, elevating the cumulative total to 621,355. There have been 657,180 confirmed COVID-19 cases to date in Ontario.
Toronto saw the highest number of cases out of all of Ontario’s public health units with 901 new confirmed infections. York Region and Peel Region followed with 345 and 280 new cases, respectively. Durham Region had 160 new cases while Halton Region had 245.
With the data posted on Tuesday, the new seven-day average of cases is 3,153 — up from 2,863 on Monday.
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Despite the slight dip in new cases, there was a noticeable jump in hospitalizations related to COVID-19. In total, there are 412 patients testing positive in Ontario’s hospitals – up from 284 on Monday.
There are 165 patients in provincial intensive care units — up by one compared to Monday’s reporting — and 105 of those people are on ventilators. According to the data, around 70.8 per cent of patients in ICUs where the status is known are either unvaccinated or partially vaccinated.
When it came to vaccinations on Monday, Premier Doug Ford tweeted 206,000 first, second and third doses were administered. Ford received his booster dose at a Toronto pharmacy on Tuesday.
Currently, 88 per cent of Ontario residents 12 and older have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 while three per cent are partially vaccinated and nine per cent are unvaccinated. For children between five and 11, the newest age group eligible for vaccination, 403,153 first doses have been administered to date — representing 37.4 per cent of the total eligible population. Looking at booster doses, 1,938,678 were administered across the province to date.
With respect to COVID-19 testing, the government reported processing 49,285 tests within the most recent 24-hour period – more than 5,000 additional tests compared to the day before. The daily test positivity rate edged up to 9.9 per cent — up from 9.7 per cent on Monday.
Meanwhile, an Ontario government spokesperson said Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore will provide his weekly update on COVID-19 at 3 p.m. CityNews will stream his remarks online.
