Toronto: With a shift to more targeted testing, there is increase in in-person activities following easing of public health measures, together with spread of the more transmissible BA.2 variant and some waning of immunity, may be contributing to increased transmission, Chief Public Health Officer of Canada said in a statement.
Health Ministry data indicates that daily average case counts have increased by 28% nationally, indicating a resurgence is underway at the national level (Mar 25-31, 2022). Likewise, laboratory test positivity during the latest 7 day period (Mar 23-29, 2022) increased to 16%, and community wastewater data signal a rising trend in a number of local areas.
The latest provincial and territorial data shows that the average number of people with COVID-19 being treated in hospitals each day during the most recent 7-day period (Mar 25-31, 2022), was 4% higher than last week. During the same time period, the number of people who were being treated in intensive care units (ICU) daily decreased by 4% compared to the prior week, and an average of 36 deaths were reported daily (Mar 25-31, 2022). Keeping infection rates down remains key to further reducing severe illness trends and protecting vulnerable populations over the coming weeks.
Similarly, over 81% of the total population are now fully vaccinated in the country. Age-specific vaccine coverage data, as of March 27, 2022, show that over 88% of people 12 years or older have at least one dose and over 85% are fully vaccinated, while among children aged 5-11 years of age, 57% have at least one dose.