Alberta’s chief medical officer of health explained on Wednesday why the province is taking a more cautious approach to easing COVID-19 restrictions this time around, compared to when the province relaunched the economy last spring.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw said Alberta is in a much different place right now than it was back in May when restrictions were lifted the first time. It comes as 259 new cases of COVID-19 and 11 additional deaths from the disease were reported Wednesday.
Hinshaw said while hospitalizations are down from a peak of 938 people on Dec. 30, there are currently still 539 people in hospital with COVID-19. That’s compared to the 57 people in hospital with COVID-19 when the economy relaunched in May following the shutdown last spring.
Additionally, there are currently 6,060 active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta. That’s compared to less than 1,000 active cases in May, Hinshaw explained.
Hinshaw also noted variant cases of COVID-19, which are more easily spread, also put the province in a different situation. Higher overall numbers, higher hospitalizations and the variants pose a threat of exponential growth, she said.
Hinshaw said the province had identified 57 cases of the variant strains of COVID-19 as of Tuesday. There were 50 cases of the B.1.1.7. variant, which was first discovered in the U.K, and seven of the N501Y.V2 variant, which was first discovered in South Africa.
For more info, please go to [ Ссылка ]
Subscribe to Global News Channel HERE: [ Ссылка ]
Like Global News on Facebook HERE: [ Ссылка ]
Follow Global News on Twitter HERE: [ Ссылка ]
Follow Global News on Instagram HERE: [ Ссылка ]
#abpoli #kenney #covid19 #coronavirus #continuingcare #GlobalNews
