Two new COVID-19 deaths in Ottawa as province reaches record hospitalizations

Two more people have died of COVID-19 in Ottawa as the province records its highest number of hospitalizations ever from the virus.

Ottawa Public Health is reporting a slight uptick in hospitalizations in Ottawa. The health unit says 61 people are in hospital because of COVID-19, up from 57 on Thursday.

However, local hospitals are reporting higher numbers of patients who are hospitalized with COVID-19 than OPH does. Those figures include patients who are in the hospital for reasons other than COVID-19 but who have tested positive.

The two new deaths in Ottawa bring the number of COVID-19 related deaths in the city to 640.

There are eight people in Ottawa ICUs on Friday, unchanged from Thursday.

Across Ontario, there are a record 3,814 people in hospital with COVID-19 and 527 in the ICU.

OPH reported 431 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 among residents who are eligible to receive COVID-19 tests. Due to the limited scope of testing, officials caution that this figure is likely an underrepresentation of the amount of COVID-19 in the community. 

The COVID-19 wastewater monitoring project has been showing a steady rise in the viral signal since the start of the year, but there are signs the viral signal may have peaked and is levelling off. The current data shows a slight decline since Jan. 5.

To date, OPH has recorded 52,276 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa. Another 1,302 previously confirmed cases are now considered resolved, dropping the number of known active cases to 5,479.

OTTAWA'S KEY COVID-19 STATISTICS

• COVID-19 cases per 100,000 (Jan. 6 to 12): 385.1 (down from 422.3) 
• Positivity rate in Ottawa (Jan. 7 to Jan. 13): 26.4 per cent (down from 32.0 per cent)
• Reproduction number (Seven day average): 0.83 (down from 0.87)
• Known active cases: 5,479 (-873)

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.

The number of known active cases is the number of confirmed cases (based on testing) minus the numbers of resolved cases and deaths. 

HOSPITALIZATIONS IN OTTAWA

There are 61 people in Ottawa hospitals on Friday who are being treated for an active COVID-19 infection, up from 57 on Wednesday.

There are eight people in the ICU, unchanged from Thursday.

Age categories of people in hospital:

• 0-9: 2
• 10-19: 1 (1 in ICU)
• 20-29: 1
• 30-39: 0
• 40-49: 7 (3 in ICU)
• 50-59: 6
• 60-69: 8 (1 in ICU)
• 70-79: 17 (2 in ICU)
• 80-89: 15 (1 in ICU) 
• 90+: 4

(Ottawa Public Health is now reporting people in hospital with an "active" infection)

COVID-19 VACCINES IN OTTAWA

As of Monday:

• Ottawa residents with 1 dose (5+): 899,678 (+1,259)
• Ottawa residents with 2 doses (5+): 829,433 (+1,733)
• Ottawa residents with 3 doses (12+): 437,634 (+18,410)
• Share of population five and older with at least one dose: 91 per cent
• Share of population five and older fully vaccinated: 84 per cent (+1) 

*Statistics on Ottawa residents with one or two doses include anyone with an Ottawa postal code who was vaccinated anywhere in Ontario.

AROUND THE REGION

• Eastern Ontario Health Unit: 66 in hospital, 9 in ICU
• Hastings Prince Edward Public Health: 36 in hospital, 8 in ICU
• Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington Public Health: 20 in hospital, 11 in ICU
• Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit: 24 in hospital, 6 in ICU
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit: 7 in hospital, 2 in ICU
• Outaouais: 116 in hospital, 3 in ICU

These figures are based on the latest data from each respective health unit at the time of publishing. 

COVID-19 OUTBREAKS

Ottawa Public Health is currently reporting active outbreaks in the following locations:

• 21 long-term care homes
• 42 retirement homes
• 28 hospital units
• 54 other congregate settings (group homes, supported independent living, etc.)
• 1 elementary school
• 1 daycare

OPH paused reporting on community outbreaks in workplaces, etc. as of Jan. 2.

A full list of locations with active outbreaks is available on OPH's COVID-19 dashboard.