Latest COVID update Dec. 20: 55 probable Omicron cases detected

The number of cases of the new Omicron COVID-19 variant in Saskatchewan has risen by 55.

The Ministry of Health said Monday on its daily COVID dashboard there were 55 new probable cases, in addition to the 10 cases that previously had been detected through whole genome sequencing.

“All COVID-19 cases are being screened by a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) test, which is used to quickly identify samples that are likely to be a specific variant such as Omicron,” the government said in a statement.

“In some instances a screened positive result will also undergo further whole genome sequencing (WGS) to determine lineage. Once a case has had WGS it is considered confirmed.”

The ministry also reported 59 new cases Monday, along with 70 recoveries.

For the third straight day, the province didn’t report any deaths due to COVID. The death toll to date stands at 942.

Hospitalizations due to COVID dropped by three from Sunday’s report, to 102. The number of cases in intensive care fell by one to 32.

A look at the numbers

The new cases were reported in the Saskatoon (25), Regina (16), central-east (eight), southeast (four), north-central (two), northwest (one), central-west (one), southwest (one) and south-central (one) zones.

The total comprised 31 fully vaccinated people, 27 unvaccinated people and one individual who was partially vaccinated. The unvaccinated group included 14 children between the ages of five and 11.

The new cases were detected in 1,089 tests.

The seven-day average of new cases stood at 59, or 4.9 cases per 100,000 people.

To date, there have been 82,267 cases reported in Saskatchewan along with 80,760 recoveries. The active case count Monday was 565.

There were 1,223 doses of COVID vaccines administered in the latest reporting period, comprising 706 first shots and 517 second doses.

To date, 1,786,599 shots have been given in Saskatchewan, with 849,609 second jabs.