No active COVID-19 cases in southern Saskatchewan

For the first time since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in Saskatchewan, there aren’t any active cases in Regina.

According to the release issued Tuesday by the provincial government, there are 193 active cases in Saskatchewan. There aren’t any south of Saskatoon.

“That is a very positive note for two reasons,” Dr. Saqib Shahab, Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer, said during a conference call with reporters. “It puts us in a good place to cautiously reopen.

“But we do also realize that there is an outbreak in the northwest of the province and we have seen from many other jurisdictions that even when you start reopening, you have to be diligent about maintaining your physical distance. That will be essential as we move forward into the new normal.

“While things are very quiet in southern Saskatchewan, we have to make sure that … anyone with even mild symptoms in the province (should) step forward for testing.”

The total number of active cases as of Tuesday comprises 151 in the far north, 29 in the north, 12 in Saskatoon and one in the central area.

The provincial report Tuesday also showed that, for the second straight day, there were more recoveries from COVID-19 in Saskatchewan than there were new cases.

The province announced there had been 11 recoveries since Monday’s report, increasing that number so far to 374. There were five new cases, bringing that total to date to 573.

All of the new cases are in the far north, with three in the Beauval area and two in La Loche.

Six people have died in Saskatchewan to date.

There are 11 people in hospital, including eight (five in the north and three in Saskatoon) who are receiving inpatient care. Three people are in intensive care in Saskatoon.

Of the total number of cases, 295 are community contacts, 139 are travellers, 64 don’t have any known exposures, and 75 are being investigated by local public health.

There have been 202 cases in the far north, 163 from the Saskatoon area, 105 from the north, 76 in the Regina area, 15 from the south and 12 from the central region.

So far, 48 health-care workers have contracted the disease, some in non-work surroundings.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) previously reported clusters or outbreaks at hospitals in Lloydminster, Meadow Lake and Prince Albert, but those all appear to have been contained.

SHA chief executive officer Scott Livingstone said on the call that mass testing of hospital workers in Lloydminster is nearly complete and there haven’t been any new cases in five days.

As well, there still has been just one positive case at the Meadow Lake Hospital, while the outbreak at Prince Albert’s Victoria Hospital is over.

Age-wise, 201 of the total number of cases to date have been between the ages of 20 and 39, 178 have been in the 40-to-59 age range, 98 have been aged 60 to 79, 79 have involved people aged 19 and under, and 17 have been in the 80-and-over range.

The 37,695 COVID-19 tests performed in the province so far included just 256 on Monday. That’s a long way from the goal of 1,500 tests per day set weeks ago by Premier Scott Moe.

Dr. Julie Kryzanowski, the SHA’s senior medical health officer, said the authority is trying to understand the province’s testing numbers.

“Part of it is a good news story in that we also believe that those decreased testing numbers reflect decreased levels of respiratory virus that are circulating — and that reflects the effectiveness of the public health measures that are in place,” Kryzanowski said.

“But at the same time, we also know that there may be barriers to testing and we’re working to understand and resolve those. One of those barriers is stigma. People, especially in small communities where confidentiality is a concern, have reported that they do not want to be tested if they could be identified as having COVID-19.”

Kryzanowski said the hope is that people will be celebrated for being tested instead of stigmatized by others in their community.

One July 1 celebration cancelled

In a media release Tuesday, it was announced the Lieutenant Governor’s Canada Day Celebration at Government House in Regina had been cancelled.

“Donna and I were looking forward to hosting our first Canada Day celebration at Government House, but we feel it is wise to cancel the event to help slow the spread of COVID-19,” Lt. Gov. Russ Mirasty said in the release. “Although we will not be gathering to celebrate Canada Day, I am prouder than ever of our country, and the way we have pulled together through this time of crisis.”

The event has been held for the past 12 years.