COVID-19 Update: 40 New Cases, Nine in Hospital, 12 Recoveries

Released on October 16, 2020

There are 40 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on October 16, bringing the total to 2,270 cases.  The new cases are located in the Far North West (6), Far North East (7), North West (1), North Central (8), Saskatoon (7), Central West (1), Central East (2), Regina (7) and South Central (1) zones.

Of the 2,270 reported cases, 299 are considered active.  A total of 1,946 people have recovered.

Two cases that had been assigned to Central East (1) and Regina (1) were deemed to be out of province cases and were removed, bringing the total case number to 2,270 cases.  The remaining case with pending residence information has been assigned to Regina.

Twenty-three of today’s new cases have been linked to close contacts/gatherings.  Note that “superspreader” events are not limited to those who attended the event itself, but quickly transmit in local settings.  The most recent summary data available indicates that 79 individuals in multiple communities have tested positive for COVID-19 are linked to the Gospel Worship event in Prince Albert, including case contacts of attendees.  At least 250 contacts have been part of the contact investigation relative to this superspreader event.

Nine people are in hospital.  Seven people are receiving inpatient care; five in the Saskatoon zone, and two in the North Central zone.  Two people are in intensive care, one in Saskatoon and one in Regina.

Of the 2,270 cases in the province to date:

• 318 cases are travellers;
• 1,101 are community contacts (including mass gatherings);
• 628 have no known exposures; and
• 223 are under investigation by local public health.

Overall in Saskatchewan to date:

• 78 cases are healthcare workers; however, the source of the infections may not be related to healthcare in all instances.
• 394 cases involve people 19 years of age and under, while the remainder are adults.
• 771 cases are in the 20-39 age range; 682 are in the 40-59 age range; 352 are in the 60-79 age range; and 71 are in the 80-plus range.
• 51 per cent of the cases are females and 49 per cent are males.
• 25 deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported to date.
• There are:
  • 468 cases are from the south area (226 south west, 209 south central, 33 south east)
  • 469 cases are from the Saskatoon area
  • 397 cases are from the far north area (365 far north west, 0 far north central, 32 far north east)
  • 363 cases are from the north area (141 north west, 142 north central, 80 north east)
  • 325 cases are from the central area (188 central west, 137 central east)
  • 248 cases are from the Regina area

To date, 225,532 COVID-19 tests have been performed in Saskatchewan.  As of October 14, 2020 when other provincial and national numbers are available from Public Health Agency of Canada, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 155,189 people tested per million population.  The national rate was 223,552 people tested per million population.

Yesterday, 2,568 COVID-19 tests were performed in Saskatchewan.

Failure to Abide by Public Health Orders May Result in Fines

In Saskatchewan and across the country, public health authorities are seeing increasing transmission rates as a result of contravention of public health orders and guidelines, particularly as a result of public and private gatherings.  There can be very serious consequences for not following Public Health Orders, including fines in cases where negligence or misconduct have been found.  Fines may be $2,000 for individuals and $10,000 for corporations, plus a victim surcharge.

Two additional fines have been issued: one to an individual and one to a corporation for failure to abide by the public health order.  A business has been ordered to temporarily close for having inadequate COVID-19 mitigation measures in place.  The owners/operators will work with the Saskatchewan Health Authority to rectify these issues.

Private Gathering Sizes Reduced

As of October 16, private indoor gatherings may have a maximum of 15 people in the home or in buildings located on the private property (eg garages, sheds).  Two-metre physical distancing should be observed when people from outside the extended household are present.

This will not impact restaurants, licensed establishments, banquet halls as well as weddings, funerals and religious gatherings which are all required to follow seating and physical distancing guidelines as described in the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan at https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/re-open-saskatchewan-plan.  Any event that occurs in a private dwelling, including weddings, religious gathering and funerals, must abide by the 15 person gathering limit.

COVID-19 Testing

COVID-19 testing is available to anyone who requests it.  A referral for testing can be made by contacting HealthLine 811, your physician or nurse practitioner.  If you require urgent care, call 911.

Further information on testing is available at https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/testing-information.

General COVID-19 Information

General public inquiries may be directed to COVID19@health.gov.sk.ca.

Find the most up-to-date version of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan at www.saskatchewan.ca/re-open.

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For more information, contact:

Health
Regina
Phone: 306-787-4083
Email: media@health.gov.sk.ca