Ontario reports more than 10,000 new COVID-19 cases setting another daily infection record
Published December 29, 2021 at 11:04 am
There are more than 10,000 new COVID-19 cases across Ontario again on Wednesday, setting yet another single day case count record.
According to reports, the province tallied 10,436 new cases and three new deaths on Wednesday, just days after a previous record-breaking case count of 10,412 on Christmas Day.
Experts have said the actual number of cases is likely far higher than those reported each day due to many public health units across the province reaching their testing capacity limit.
The seven day-rolling average of new cases now sits at 9,183, which is more than double the rolling average of 3,520 one week ago.
More than 90 per cent of Ontarians over the age of 12 have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while some 88 per cent have received at least two doses.
While vaccinated people account for the majority of new cases, there are more than 10 times more unvaccinated individuals being hospitalized after contracting COVD-19 according to the province’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table.
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The province said 1,514 of Wednesday’s new cases involved unvaccinated people, while 425 involved partially vaccinated people, 8,221 involved fully vaccinated people and 276 involved people with an unknown vaccination status.
The Omicron variant of the virus is spreading so effectively that the science table predicted weeks ago that Ontario was on track to record 10,000 cases a day by January.
The province recorded its first daily case count of over 10,000 on Dec. 25.
According to data from the table, two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine results in an approximate 12 per cent relative reduction in risk of symptomatic infection due to the new Omicron variant.
Rapid tests are becoming a commodity, with many locations across Southern Ontario offering free tests including:
- Square One, Mississauga
- Pickering, Go Station
- Upper Canada Mall, Newmarket
- Scarborough Town Centre
- Hillcrest Mall, Richmond Hill
- CF Lime Ridge Mall, Hamilton
The availability of test sites and test kits comes as part of the Ontario government’s latest response to surging cases of the virus due to the onset of the Omicron variant.
Ontario has made available two million rapid test kits to be provided free of charge through mid-January at pop-up testing sites in high-traffic settings such as malls, other retail areas, holiday markets, public libraries and transit hubs.
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