Dr. Deena Hinshaw to update Albertans on COVID-19
CBC
Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province's chief medical officer of health, will update Albertans on efforts to contain the spread of Omicron and ease the pressure on provincial hospitals.
Hinshaw will speak at 3:30 p.m. MT Thursday. Watch the news conference live here.
On Wednesday, Alberta reported 14 more deaths as the number of patients in hospital with the illness continues to increase. There have been 3,593 COVID-19-related deaths in Alberta.
As of Wednesday, 1,598 patients were being treated in hospital with COVID-19, the highest number ever reported in Alberta during the pandemic.
There are now 106 ICU patients who have tested positive for COVID.
Of people admitted to hospital in the past week, 57 per cent of new non-ICU admissions and 70.2 per cent of new ICU admissions were directly related to COVID. The remainder of admissions were not related to the virus, or it was unclear.
As of Jan. 29, provincial ICU capacity, including additional surge beds, was at 75.1 per cent. Without the additional surge spaces, provincial ICU capacity would be at 105 per cent.
The seven-day average for test-positivity is 36.38 per cent.
There are now 34,877 known active cases in the province though the true number is likely much higher as few Albertans have access to lab-based testing.
On Tuesday, Premier Jason Kenney has said the worst of the fifth wave has likely passed and has said the province could begin lifting all restrictions by the end of month, if the pressure on hospitals declines as anticipated.
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