'Rise in numbers is always concerning': Southern Health Region seeing climbing COVID-19 infection rates
CTV
COVID-19 infection rates are climbing in the Southern Health Region at a pace much quicker than the more densely populated Winnipeg Health Region.
COVID-19 infection rates are climbing in the Southern Health Region at a pace much quicker than the more densely populated Winnipeg Health Region.
Twenty-four of the 60 new COVID-19 cases reported by provincial health officials on Friday, so nearly half, are from the Southern Health Region. Sixteen were counted in the Winnipeg Health Region.
It’s not a one-day blip.
Over the last seven days, the Southern Health Region, which has a population of 211,896 residents according to a 2020 provincial census, saw 157 new COVID-19 cases.
The Winnipeg health region, housing roughly 791,284 people, saw 98 new cases in the same span of time.
When accounting for population, however, there were 10.6 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people in the Southern Health Region compared to just under two in the Winnipeg Health Region.
In other words, even though the Southern Health Region has roughly a quarter of the population of the Winnipeg Health Region, it’s seeing an infection rate five times higher.
