COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Aug. 10, 2021 - CTV Edmonton

OTTAWA -- Good morning. Here is the latest news on COVID-19 and its impact on Ottawa.

Fast Facts:

• Ottawa Public Health reported five new COVID-19 cases in Ottawa. There were zero deaths across Ontario linked to the virus Monday.
• The number of Ottawans who are fully vaccinated increased slightly over the weekend but the pace of vaccination has slowed dramatically. 
• There were long waits at some border crossings in the region as Canada reopened land borders for the first time since March 2020.

COVID-19 by the numbers in Ottawa (Ottawa Public Health data):

• New COVID-19 cases: Five new cases on Monday.
• Total COVID-19 cases: 27,883
• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 6.4
• Positivity rate in Ottawa: 0.7 per cent (seven day average)
• Reproduction Number: 1.33 (seven day average)

Testing:

Who should get a test?

Ottawa Public Health says you can get a COVID-19 test at an assessment centre, care clinic, or community testing site if any of the following apply to you:

• You are showing COVID-19 symptoms;
• You have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus, as informed by Ottawa Public Health or exposure notification through the COVID Alert app;
• You are a resident or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by Ottawa Public Health;
• You are a resident, a worker or a visitor to long-term care, retirement homes, homeless shelters or other congregate settings (for example: group homes, community supported living, disability-specific communities or congregate settings, short-term rehab, hospices and other shelters);
• You are a person who identifies as First Nations, Inuit or Métis;
• You are a person travelling to work in a remote First Nations, Inuit or Métis community;
• You received a preliminary positive result through rapid testing;
• You are a patient and/or their 1 accompanying escort tra­velling out of country for medical treatment;
• You are a farm worker;
• You are an educator who cannot access pharmacy-testing; or
• You are in a targeted testing group as outlined in guidance from the Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Long-term care staff, caregivers, volunteers and visitors who are fully immunized against COVID-19 are not required to present a negative COVID-19 test before entering or visiting a long-term care home.

Where to get tested for COVID-19 in Ottawa:

There are several sites for COVID-19 testing in Ottawa. To book an appointment, visit https://www.ottawapublichealth.ca/en/shared-content/assessment-centres.aspx

• The Brewer Ottawa Hospital/CHEO Assessment Centre: Open Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• COVID-19 Drive-Thru Assessment Centre at 300 Coventry Road: Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• The Moodie Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 
• The Ray Friel Care and Testing Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• North Grenville COVID-19 Assessment Centre (Kemptville) – 15 Campus Drive: Open Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Centretown Community Health Centre: Open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Sandy Hill Community Health Centre: Open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 pm.
• Somerset West Community Health Centre: Open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday

COVID-19 screening tool:

The COVID-19 screening tool for summer camp children and staff. All campers and staff must complete the COVID-19 School and Childcare screening tool daily.

Symptoms:

Classic Symptoms: fever, new or worsening cough, shortness of breath

Other symptoms: sore throat, difficulty swallowing, new loss of taste or smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, pneumonia, new or unexplained runny nose or nasal congestion

Less common symptoms: unexplained fatigue, muscle aches, headache, delirium, chills, red/inflamed eyes, croup

Ottawa Public Health says five more people in Ottawa have tested positive for COVID-19. There are no new deaths to report.

It's a drop from the double-digit case counts reported over the four days prior. OPH reported 11 new cases Thursday, 18 new cases Friday, 12 new cases Saturday and 16 new cases Sunday.

OPH reported no new deaths for a 25th straight day. Active cases dropped slightly on Monday, but the weekly incidence rate per 100,000 population continues to rise.

Ottawa Public Health does not report the vaccination status of any individuals who test positive for COVID-19. According to the Ontario government's latest figures, of 18,685 COVID-19 cases confirmed in Ottawa between Dec. 14, 2020 and July 24, 2021, only 130, or 0.7 per cent, were considered "breakthrough" cases in fully vaccinated individuals. Another 669 cases, or 3.6 per cent of all cases in that timeframe, were in people who were considered only partially vaccinated.

Ottawa Public Health says 84 per cent of residents 12 and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 74 per cent are fully vaccinated.

It's a slight increase over figures shared Friday, when first and second dose coverage was at 83 per cent and 73 per cent respectively.

With a majority of eligible residents fully vaccinated, the overall pace of vaccinations has slowed down significantly in recent weeks. OPH reports 27,126 doses of vaccine were administered locally last week, down from 33,292 the week prior and significantly lower than the record of 132,577, set the week of July 4.

Vaccine coverage among the population aged 18 to 39 continues to lag. OPH data show 73 per cent of 18-to-29-year-olds have had at least one dose, which is the lowest coverage rate among all age categories. Seventy-four per cent of 30-to-39-year-olds have had at least one dose, which is the second lowest coverage rate. Those figures increased by a single point in the last week. The full vaccination rate in these two groups is 59 per cent and 63 per cent, respectively, up from 56 and 60 per cent last Monday.

Despite the looming threat of the Delta variant and surging COVID-19 infection in the U.S., Americans were allowed back into Canada for non-essential reasons Monday as the federal government reopened the land borders that had been closed for 17 months.

American citizens and permanent residents were allowed back on Canadian soil, provided at least 14 days had elapsed since receiving a full course of a COVID-19 vaccine approved by Health Canada.

There were delays of up to three hours reported at some border crossings in eastern Ontario Monday morning but those waits dropped to about 20 minutes by the evening hours.

As of now, border agents won't be setting up separate queues for vaccinated and unvaccinated visitors. The CBSA said a pilot project in July showed it had no appreciable effect on wait times.

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COVID-19 in Ottawa: Fast Facts for Aug. 10, 2021 - CTV Edmonton
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