OTTAWA -- Ottawa Public Health is reporting its lowest number of new COVID-19 cases in the city since mid-December.

OPH says 23 more people in Ottawa have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the city's pandemic total to 13,000 cases.

One new death was also reported in Ottawa on Tuesday. There have been 420 COVID-19 related deaths in Ottawa since the pandemic began.

Provincially, 1,740 new cases of COVID-19 were reported across Ontario.

Public Health Ontario also reported 63 new COVID-19 related deaths in the province and 2,261 new resolved cases.

The figures from Ottawa Public Health often differ from Public Health Ontario due to different data collection times. The two health units were only apart by two cases in terms of their pandemic totals on Monday. Ottawa Public Health's total number of cases on Monday was 12,977, versus 12,979 reported by the province. That gap has now grown to 11 cases, with Ontario's total at 13,011 and Ottawa's at 13,000.

Weekly trends in Ottawa continue to show signs of improvement, with the weekly incidence rate per 100,000 residents dropping below 55 and the estimated reproduction number still below 1. The testing positivity rate was 3.0 per cent for the week of Jan. 18 to 24. The number of people with known active cases of COVID-19 also continues to fall and is now below 800.

Ottawa's epidemiologic trends remain in "red" status under Ontario's colour-coded framework. Criteria to move to "orange" status include the weekly rate of cases per 100,000 residents dropping to below 40 and the testing positivty rate falling to below 2.5 per cent.

OTTAWA'S COVID-19 KEY STATISTICS

Ottawa Public Health moved Ottawa into its red zone in early January.

A provincial stay-at-home order has been in effect since Jan. 14, 2021.

Ottawa Public Health data:

  • COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (previous seven days): 54.8 cases
  • Positivity rate in Ottawa: 3.0 per cent (Jan. 18 - Jan. 24)
  • Reproduction number: 0.90 (seven day average)

Reproduction values greater than 1 indicate the virus is spreading and each case infects more than one contact. If it is less than 1, it means spread is slowing. 

VACCINES

As of Jan. 25

  • Doses administered in Ottawa (first and second shots): 23,883
  • Doses received in Ottawa: 25,350

ACTIVE CASES OF COVID-19 IN OTTAWA

The number of people in Ottawa with known active cases of COVID-19 is at its lowest since Jan. 2, falling below 800 to 754 in Tuesday's report.

The drop was driven largely by 137 new resolved cases being reported. OPH says 11,826 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began are now considered resolved.

The number of active cases is the number of total laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. A case is considered resolved 14 days after known symptom onset or positive test result.

 

HOSPITALIZATIONS IN OTTAWA

The number of people in Ottawa hospitals with COVID-19 complications fell to 33 on Tuesday, down from 34 on Monday. There are six people in intensive care, down from eight.

Of the people in hospital, seven are in their 50s, eight are in their 60s (five are in the ICU), one is in their 70s, 10 are in their 80s (one is in the ICU), and seven are 90 or older.

COVID-19 TESTING

Ontario health officials said 30,717 COVID-19 tests were performed provincewide on Monday and 36,405 tests remain under investigation.

The Ottawa COVID-19 Testing Taskforce says 1,519 swabs were taken at local assessment centres on Monday and local labs performed 3,596 COVID-19 tests. There are 1,596 tests still in progress as of Jan. 26. 

The average turnaround from the time the swab is taken at a testing site to the result is 20 hours.

Testing numbers are typically lower on Mondays than they are during the rest of the week, but the figures shared Tuesday are on par with other Tuesdays so far this month.

The positivity rate for the week of Jan. 18 to 24 was 3.0 per cent. The taskforce reported a positivty rate of 4.0 per cent for the week of Jan. 11 to 17 and a 4.6 per cent positivity rate for the week of Jan. 4 to 10.

COVID-19 CASES BY AGE CATEGORY

  • 0-9 years old: 10 new cases (940 total cases)
  • 10-19 years-old: Zero new cases (1,630 total cases)
  • 20-29 years-old: Four new cases (2,772 total cases)
  • 30-39 years-old: Four new cases (1,801 total cases)
  • 40-49 years-old: Three new cases (1,688 total cases)
  • 50-59 years-old: Zero new cases (1,542 total cases)
  • 60-69-years-old: Two new cases (949 total cases)
  • 70-79 years-old: One case reassigned to other category (584 total cases)
  • 80-89 years-old: One new case (655 total cases)
  • 90+ years old: Zero new cases (436 total cases)

The ages of three people with COVID-19 are unknown.

COVID-19 CASES ACROSS THE REGION

  • Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 18 new cases
  • Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: Zero new cases
  • Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington Public Health: One case removed
  • Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit: Zero new cases
  • Renfrew County and District Health Unit: Zero new cases
  • Outaouais region: Nine new cases

INSTITUTIONAL OUTBREAKS

Ottawa Public Health is reporting COVID-19 outbreaks at 39 institutions in Ottawa, including long-term care homes, retirement homes, daycares, hospitals and schools.

No new outbreaks were declared on Tuesday. An outbreak at an Ottawa group home has ended. There were four resident cases, four staff cases and zero deaths. 

There are seven active community outbreaks, all linked to workplaces, including an office, a construction site, a restaurant, a warehouse, a manufacturing or industrial facility, a health workplace and a services workplace.

The schools and childcare spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:

  1. Children's Village of Ottawa-Carleton - Home daycare
  2. Greenboro Children's Centre
  3. Little Acorn Early Learning Centre
  4. Montessori by Brightpath
  5. Ruddy Family Y Child Care
  6. Wee Watch Nepean – Home Child Care - 29084

The long-term care homes, retirement homes, hospitals, and other spaces currently experiencing outbreaks are:

  1. Besserer Place
  2. Centre D'Accueil Champlain
  3. Colonel By Retirement Home
  4. Elisabeth Bruyere Residence
  5. Extendicare Laurier Manor
  6. Extendicare Medex
  7. Extendicare New Orchard Lodge
  8. Extendicare West End Villa
  9. Forest Hill
  10. Garden Terrace
  11. Garry J. Armstrong long-term care home
  12. Grace Manor Long-term Care Home
  13. Group Home - 28608
  14. Group Home - 29049
  15. Group Home - 29052
  16. Madonna Care Community
  17. Montfort Long-term Care Centre
  18. Oakpark Retirement Community
  19. Park Place
  20. Perley and Rideau Veterans' Health Centre
  21. Peter D. Clark long-term care home
  22. Richmond Care Home
  23. Rockcliffe Retirement Residence
  24. Shelter - 28778
  25. Shelter - 29413
  26. Sisters of Charity - Couvent Mont St. Joseph
  27. St. Patrick's Home
  28. Stirling Park Retirement Community
  29. Supported Independent Living - 29100
  30. The Ravines Independent Living
  31. Valley Stream Retirement Residence
  32. Villa Marconi
  33. Villagia in the Glebe

A single laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in a resident or staff member of a long-term care home, retirement home or shelter triggers an outbreak response, according to Ottawa Public Health. In childcare settings, a single confirmed, symptomatic case in a staff member, home daycare provider, or child triggers an outbreak.

Under provincial guidelines, a COVID-19 outbreak in a school is defined as two or more lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in students and/or staff in a school with an epidemiological link, within a 14-day period, where at least one case could have reasonably acquired their infection in the school (including transportation and before or after school care).