Ontario reported 1,780 new cases of COVID-19 and 25 new deaths on December 4.
Hospitalizations are continuing to rise as the labs in the province complete more than 56,000 tests.
There are 14,997 confirmed active cases in the province, and 674 patients are hospitalized. There are 207 patients in intensive care – the first time the number has crossed 200 since the first wave – and 116 of those patients are on ventilators.
The province completed 56,001 tests since yesterday, marking a 3.2 per cent positivity rate on December 4. That’s the second-highest number of tests completed in 24 hours.
The province recorded 1,824 new cases on Thursday, 1,723 on Wednesday and 1,707 on Tuesday.
The seven-day moving average for new cases 1,759, down slightly over the previous day but up by 25 per cent over last week.
Toronto made up 633 of all new cases, along with 433 in Peel and 152 in York Region.
There are 112 long-term care homes in outbreak currently, down four from the day before. Of the 25 deaths reported in the past day, 15 were among long-term care residents.
On Thursday, the province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams said some regions may move up in the COVID-19 response framework. Toronto and Peel Region are the only regions in the grey lockdown level.
York Region, Durham Region, Halton Region, Hamilton, Waterloo and Windsor-Essex are in the red zone.
There were 129 new cases in schools in the past 24 hours, with 102 student cases and 27 staff cases.
Ages 20 to 39 made up roughly 40 per cent of cases, ages 40 to 59 made up just over 30 per cent, ages 19 and under made up 15 per cent, ages 60 to 79 made up 13 per cent and people over 80 were just under 4 per cent.
There have been 123,526 total COVID-19 cases to date in Ontario, including
104,792 resolved – up 1,553 from the day before. A total of 3,737 people have died from the virus.
On Friday morning, the province announced the members of the COVID-19 vaccine task force.
The task force, which includes former Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders, will focus on “delivery, logistics and administration, clinical guidance as well as public education and outreach,” the government said in a news release.
The federal government has said the first doses could be available in Canada early in the New Year. Health Canada officials are reviewing four vaccines and an approval could happen within a week to 10 days, officials have said.
New COVID-19 cases in Ontario on December 4
The following regions reported five or more cases of COVID-19:
Toronto = 633
Peel = 433
York Region = 152
Durham Region = 94
Windsor-Essex County = 68
Halton Region = 51
City of Hamilton = 43
Simcoe Muskoka District = 41
Region of Waterloo = 40
Middlesex-London = 39
Ottawa = 36
Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph = 25
Niagara Region = 21
Southwestern = 20
Thunder Bay District = 13
Brant County = 11
Huron Perth = 10
Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington = 7
Grey Bruce = 7
Hastings Prince Edward = 6
