By Chris Brown (CHAT News Today) and Josh Hall (rdnewsNOW)

WHAT THE PROVINCE IS SAYING...

Alberta’s COVID-19 numbers for April 13, 2022

Apr 13, 2022 | 4:45 PM

Beginning the week of March 23, 2022 Alberta Health is only sharing new COVID-19 data with the public on Wednesdays, barring extenuating circumstances. rdnewsNOW will continue to report them as they are updated.

As Albertans head into their third Easter COVID weekend, Dr. Deena Hinshaw says people need to remember that indoor social gatherings create a higher risk of transmission of the virus.

“We also know that people gain benefit from spending time with people they care about and it’s important to be able to celebrate important holidays with those family and friends,” said the chief medical officer of health in the weekly Wednesday update. “So what I would recommend is that people consider who they’re going to be gathering with, and consider what precautions are appropriate for these individuals.”

She said it’s critical anyone feeling sick not attend a gathering, consider the use of rapid tests and having parts of gatherings outdoors if the weather is co-operative.

Of the two leading indicators the province is watching, PCR test positivity rate is stable, while wastewater virus levels are trending up, says Health Minister Jason Copping.

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“We’re seeing more virus circulating in Alberta as in other provinces. This is not surprising given the transmissibility of BA.2 and the increase in contacts as people resume their normal routines,” he said.

There has not been a severe impact in terms of severe outcomes, Copping says, noting hospitalizations have only gone up slightly.

“We may see some further increase in the next few weeks, but we are prepared for it. And at this time we do not expect the kind of impact we saw in the initial Omicron wave in December and in January. “

Copping said hospital occupancy is stable at around 90 per cent, and ICU admissions are within the normal base of 173 beds on most days in the past couple of weeks.

Copping said there’s no truth to rumours that the rapid test program at Alberta pharmacies is coming to an end. He said there remains ample supply for pharmacies and they can continue to request more as supply demands.

The province will also pause the use of Sotrovimab as a COVID treatment following uncertainty about its effectiveness against the BA.2 subvariant. That strain is currently the dominant one in Alberta, accounting for about 80 per cent of total new cases.

PROVINCIAL NUMBERS

*Numbers are up to date as of previous day’s end. Numbers in parentheses represent a seven-day change unless otherwise noted

Hospitalizations: 1,053 (+63)

ICU admissions: 48 (+4)

Deaths: 4,141 (+37)

MORE HEALTHCARE CAPACITY DATA

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*With the province limiting testing since the fifth wave, these confirmed cases do not accurately reflect the number of cases in the community.

Total cases:

April 11: 842
April 10: 590
April 9: 822
April 8: 945
April 7: 929
April 6: 1,014
April 5: 1,039

>> Total new cases over last 7 days: 6,181 >> last week: 5,549 new cases over 7 days

Seven-day positivity rate: 26.62% (+0.26)

RED DEER

*Numbers are up to date as of previous day’s end. Numbers in parentheses represent a seven-day change unless otherwise noted

Total cases: 14,262 (+212)

7-day new case rate: 199.3 (up from 110.9)

Deaths: 102 >> last death reported week ending March 30

CENTRAL ZONE

*Numbers are up to date as of previous day’s end. Numbers in parentheses represent a seven-day change unless otherwise noted

Hospitalizations: 156 (+10)

ICU admissions: 2 (-1)

Deaths: 525 (+4)

Elsewhere in the zone (7-day new case rate)

Red Deer County: 138.6 (-126.5)

Sylvan Lake: 146.8 (+64.6)

Lacombe County: 113.4 (+77.1)

City of Lacombe: 69.1 (-16)

Ponoka County: 149.0 (-39.9)

For more data from central Alberta communities, click here.

VACCINATION DATA

WASTEWATER DATA

(Story by Chris Brown/CHAT News Today, stats compiled by Josh Hall/rdnewsNOW)