Quebec, Ontario each reporting more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases today

Ontario and Quebec are each reporting more than 1,000 new cases of COVID-19, ahead of separate briefings later today from the top health officials in both provinces.

Ontario is reporting 1,429 new COVID-19 cases and five more deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus, and Quebec is reporting 1,747 new infections and seven more deaths linked to the pandemic.

There are 95 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in Ontario, but public health officials have said they assume the number is much higher and expect the new mutation will soon become dominant.

Quebec’s public health institute says it has confirmed 11 cases of the Omicron variant in the province and identified 11 more suspected cases. 

Quebec health officials are holding a news conference at 1 p.m. local time, and Ontario officials are speaking to reporters at 3 p.m.

Meanwhile, an analysis by South Africa’s largest private health insurer and by the South African Medical Research Council suggests the Omicron variant appears to cause less severe disease compared with previous versions of the novel coronavirus.

The analysis, which has not been peer reviewed, indicates that the Pfizer vaccine may offer less protection against infection from the variant compared with previous strains but that it continues to offer a high level of protection against hospitalizations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 14, 2021.

— With files from The Associated Press.

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

The Canadian Press