Sask. confirms 106 COVID-19 cases, 1 death
The Government of Saskatchewan reported 106 new COVID-19 cases, one death and 135 recoveries on Saturday.
The province’s 555th death was a person in the 80-plus age group from the North West zone.
There are 874 cases considered active in Saskatchewan.
A total of 96 people are in hospital related to COVID-19, including 17 people in intensive care.
New cases are located in the Far North West (three), Far North East (one), North West (19), North Central (17), North East (two), Saskatoon (29), Central West (five), Central East (three), Regina (10), South West (three), South Central (eight) and South East (four) zones. Two cases are pending residence information.
Five cases from Saskatchewan residents tested out-of-province were added to the Far North East Zone.
Saskatchewan’s seven-day average for daily new cases is 79, or 6.5 per 100,000 population.
There were 2,159 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan on Friday.
VACCINES
Saskatchewan reported an additional 18,014 doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered, bringing the provincial total to 878,665.
As of Saturday, 68 per cent of those 18 and older and 66 per cent of those 12 and older have received their first dose.
VARIANTS OF CONCERN
The province has identified 11,664 Variants of Concern (VOC), up 160 from Friday’s total.
No new lineage results were reported Saturday.
To date, labs have confirmed the variant type of 6,199 variant cases through whole genome sequencing. The dominant variant type in Saskatchewan continues to be the Alpha variant – also known as the B.1.1.7 variant first identified in the U.K. To date, 5,932 Alpha variant cases have been confirmed across the province.
UPDATE TO SECOND DOSE SCHEDULE
The province announced an accelerated second dose schedule Friday. Everyone age 12 and older will be eligible to get their second dose by the end of June.
The government attributes the accelerated schedule to the increase in expected deliveries of the Moderna vaccine. The schedule may continue to change due to vaccine availability.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.