The latest developments on COVID-19 in Canada on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021

The latest developments on the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada (all times eastern):

6:15 p.m.

B.C. officials are reporting 456 new cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths, pushing the death toll in the province to 1,338.

There are 4,668 active cases, including 237 people who are hospitalized, and close to 8,000 people are being monitored after exposure to known cases.

Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say in a joint statement 230,875 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in B.C. to date, including 62,608 second doses.

B.C. has confirmed 78,278 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.

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5:30 p.m.

Alberta is reporting 430 new cases of COVID-19 and 13 additional deaths.

The province says 307 people are in hospital and 56 of them are in intensive care.

Twenty-two new variant cases have been detected, bringing that total to 323.

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4:50 p.m.

The Northwest Territories says it has vaccinated 42 per cent of its adult population to date.

Chief public health officer Dr. Kami Kandola says 14,520 first doses have been administered in the territory to date, while 1,934 people have been fully vaccinated.

Kandola also says the territory expects to receive another 16,200 doses of the Moderna vaccine by the end of this week.

There are five active cases of COVID-19 in the Northwest Territories.

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4:35 p.m.

Prince Edward Island is reporting two new cases of COVID-19 today.

Health officials say the cases involve two women — one in her 20s and one in her 30s — and are related to travel within Atlantic Canada.

The two cases are linked to a previously reported case.

P.E.I. has three active reported cases of COVID-19.

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3:40 p.m.

Moderna has confirmed it will ship 1.3 million doses to Canada next month.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the House of Commons Canada is getting 460,000 doses the week of March 8, and 840,000 the week of March 22.

The shipments will fulfil the company’s contract to ship two million doses by the end of March. 

Patricia Gauthier, Moderna’s manager in Canada, says delays to the planned shipments this month were related only to slower-than-anticipated production as the company massively expands its manufacturing.

Trudeau also says there will be 1.5 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine delivered in the first two weeks of April. 

Pfizer is shipping 2.2 million doses in March.

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2:55 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 56 new cases of COVID-19.

It’s one of the lowest counts for new daily cases recorded in months.

Health officials say there are 165 people in hospital, with 17 people in intensive care.

Another three residents who were 60 and older have also died from the virus.

To date, the province says it’s given around 63,000 vaccinations.

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2 p.m.

New Brunswick is reporting two new cases of COVID-19 today.

One case is in the Edmundston region and involves a staff member in their 70s at the Manoir Belle Vue long-term care home, which has reported seven COVID-19-related deaths.

The other case involves a person in their 50s in the Moncton region.

There are now 64 active reported cases in the province and two people are hospitalized with the disease, including one in intensive care.

New Brunswick has reported a total of 1,426 cases of COVID-19 and 26 COVID-19-related deaths.

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1:50 p.m.

Manitoba health officials are reporting one COVID-19 death today and 45 new cases. 

However, six cases have been removed due to data corrections, so the net additional count is 39.

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1:50 p.m.

Manitoba is starting to vaccinate people in the general population. 

Appointments are now available for people aged over 95, or over 75 for First Nations people. 

Until now, vaccines had been directed at certain groups such as health-care workers and people in personal care homes.

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12:45 p.m.

Newfoundland and Labrador health authorities are reporting the province’s fifth death related to COVID-19.

Officials say six more people are in hospital due to the disease.

Public health is also reporting eight new cases, all in the eastern region, where an outbreak has been flaring for several weeks.

Chief medical officer Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says though case numbers have been low these past few days, the province remains in lockdown and people must stay on guard.

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12 p.m.

The Manitoba government has announced the location of its fourth site for large-scale vaccine distribution. 

Health officials say a so-called supersite will open in early March at a former hospital in Selkirk. 

There are similar sites already in Winnipeg, Brandon and Thompson.

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11:30 a.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting three new cases of COVID-19 and now has 21 active infections.

The new cases are in the Halifax area.

One is a close contact of a previously reported case, while the other two cases are under investigation.

As of Tuesday 29,237 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, with 11,658 people having received their required second dose.

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11:15 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 806 new COVID-19 cases and 17 more deaths attributed to the virus, including five in that past 24 hours.

Health officials say hospitalizations dropped by 25, to 655, and the number of intensive care cases rose for a second consecutive day, with 10 more patients for a total of 130.

The province says it administered 8,807 doses of COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday, for a total of 376,910 since the campaign began.

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11 a.m. 

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller says active cases of COVID-19 in First Nations communities are declining access the country.

Miller says there were 1,443 active cases and a total of 20,347 confirmed positive COVID-19 cases in First Nations communities on-reserve as of yesterday.

Miller says vaccinations have begun in 440 Indigenous communities and more than 103,000 doses have been administered.

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10:45 a.m.

Ontario plans to start vaccinating residents aged 80 and older against COVID-19 in the third week of March, depending on vaccine supply. 

Retired Gen. Rick Hillier, the head of the province’s vaccine task force, says an online booking system and service desk will become available on March 15 and people in that 80 and older age range, or those booking for them, can access it.

Hillier says the task force aims to then vaccinate adults aged 75 and older starting April 15, and shots will go to those 70 and older beginning May 1.

He says people aged 65 and older will be vaccinated starting June 1.

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10:40 a.m.

Ontario says there are 1,054 new cases of COVID-19 in the province today and nine more deaths linked to the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says that 363 of those new cases are in Toronto, 186 are in Peel Region and 94 are in York Region. 

More than 17,000 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine were administered in Ontario since Tuesday’s daily update.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 24, 2021.

The Canadian Press