(Canadian Press)

By paNOW Staff

Phase One complete

Province says phase one of vaccine plan complete as of today

Apr 22, 2021 | 2:27 PM

The Saskatchewan government has announced the completion of phase one of the provincial vaccine delivery plan as of April 22.

Phase one priority vaccinations, according to the Saskatchewan government, included long-term care and personal care home residents and staff, emergency healthcare workers, residents over the age of 70, Northern Administrative District residents over 50, and far north residents over 40 just to name a few.

The province continues with Phase two vaccination roll out. The separate reporting of Phase one health care worker category will cease and this population will be reported on in the general age categories. Anyone identified as eligible for Phase one vaccination who did not yet receive a vaccine, can still make an appointment to be vaccinated. Once you are eligible you remain eligible.

An additional 7,333 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 372,334.

The 7,333 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered to residents living in the following regions: Far North West (240), Far North Central (43), Far North East (281), North West (248), North Central (823), North East (776), Saskatoon (1,222), Central West (534), Central East (496), Regina (962), South West (328), South Central (350) and South East (772). There were 258 doses administered with zone of residence pending.

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The Saskatchewan government has reported another 7,333 doses of COVID-19 vaccines delivered in Saskatchewan as of April 22. This brings the provincial total to 372,334. (Government of Saskatchewan)

More than 300,000 people, or 53 per cent, of Saskatchewan residents age 40+ have received their first dose:

All vaccine administration details for the province, including first and second doses, can be found on the dashboard at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness. As the source database for vaccine information, Panorama is subject to continuous data updates which may result in revised counts, day over day.

All of this week’s scheduled Pfizer shipment has arrived in Saskatchewan and is being distributed in the Saskatoon (12,870 doses), Regina (10,530 doses), Prince Albert (2,340 doses), North Battleford (2,340 doses) and Yorkton (1,170) areas. Indigenous Services Canada has also received this week’s scheduled Pfizer shipment (2,340 doses) for distribution to indigenous communities.

Pharmacy Vaccination Pilot Project

Select pharmacies in 14 Saskatchewan communities will start to receive vaccine on April 29 as part of a pilot program to offer COVID-19 vaccinations. Booking for vaccination appointments may be offered as early as Monday, April 26.

Up to 63 pharmacies will participate in a small-scale rollout to refine distribution and vaccination processes. Staff working in pharmacies and stores housing pharmacies that are participating in vaccinations are eligible for vaccination.

Additional pharmacies in more communities will be added as larger volumes of vaccine become available in the coming weeks.

Residents are asked to be patient as booking for appointments will vary by pharmacy, so please watch for local notifications. A list of participating pharmacies will be available on the Government of Saskatchewan website once pharmacies are ready to accept bookings. For more information visit www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-pharmacies.

Vaccination Booking System Now Open to Ages 44+

Effective today, eligibility in the provincial age-based immunization program has expanded to age 44 and older, except for the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District, where it remains age 40 and older. This applies to all immunization clinics: booked appointments, drive-thru/walk-in, and mobile.

Please remember that demand for appointments outweighs current available supply. Residents will notice that there are more clinic options in rural and northern communities than in urban centres currently as all appointments in these centres are currently booked. More appointments to be added in these communities by Wednesday, April 28 and additional clinics will be added as new vaccine shipments are received.

Appointments can be made online at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19. People who do not have a cell phone or email account, need assistance in booking, or are providing documentation for priority eligibility status must book by calling 1-833-SaskVax (1-833-727-5829). Additional information on how to book your appointment is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-booking.

Please do not call until you are eligible to book your vaccination appointment.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics

There are 254 new cases of COVID-19 and 299 recoveries to report in Saskatchewan on April 22, bringing the provincial total to 39,137 cases; 36,162 recoveries and 2,505 cases considered active.

There is one new death reported in the 50 to 59 age group in the South Central zone.

The new cases in northern Saskatchewan are located in the Far North West (14), Far North East (nine), North West (18), North Central (12), and North East (seven) zones. Four new cases have pending residence information. Five cases with pending residence information have been assigned to the Regina (two) and South East (three) zones.

As of April 22, the Saskatchewan government is reporting another 254 new cases and 299 recoveries across the province. (Government of Saskatchewan)

One hundred and seventy-seven (177) people are in hospital. One hundred and twenty-nine (129) people are receiving inpatient care: Far North East (one), North West (five), North Central (six), Saskatoon (43), Central East (eight), Regina (53), South West (one), South Central (four) and South East (eight). Forty-eight (48) people are in intensive care: North Central (two), Saskatoon (eight), Central East (three), Regina (34) and South West (one).

As of April 22, there are 177 people being hospitalized in relation to COVID-19. This includes 48 people receiving intensive care. (Government of Saskatchewan)

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 case number was 248 (20.2 new cases per 100,000). A chart comparing today’s average to data collected over the past several months is available on the Government of Saskatchewan website at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

There were 3,706 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan on April 21, 2021.

To date, 741,278 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan. As of April 20, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 621,606 tests performed per million population. The national rate was 796,584 tests performed per million population.

As of April 21, 5,521 variants of concern have been identified by screening in Saskatchewan, reported in the Far North West (49), Far North East (two), North West (108), North Central (71), North East (eight), Saskatoon (560), Central West (75), Central East (229), Regina (3,206), South West (136), South Central (432) and South East (575) zones. There are 70 screened VOCs with residence pending.

There are zero new lineage results reported today. Of the 2,060 VOCs with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, 2,046 are B.1.1.1.7 (UK), nine (9) are B.1.351 (SA) and five (5) are P.1. (Brazilian). The Regina zone accounts for 1,474 (72 per cent) of the VOC cases with confirmed lineage reported in Saskatchewan.

As of April 22, there are 2,505 active cases of COVID-19 across the province. (Submitted photo/Government of Saskatchewan)

Please note that these VOCs may have been initially identified via means other than screening (i.e. selection for whole genome sequencing without screening) and that whole genome sequencing results to identify lineage are included in the screening results.

Confirmed variant of concern cases may appear in both columns on the website, depending on testing for that case. Adding the cases identified by screening and those that have received whole genome sequencing may result in double-counting individual cases.

Further statistics on the total number of cases among health care workers, breakdowns of total cases by source of infection, age, sex and region, total tests to date, per capita testing rate and current numbers of confirmed variants of concern can be found at http://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-cases.

NITHA Data

As of April 21, there are 27 active cases of COVID-19 in NITHA communities. These cases are located in the Far North Central, Athabasca (0), Far North West (13), Far North East (12), North Central (0), and North East (two). There have been 3,400 cases (98 per cent) that have recovered.

As of April 21, there are 27 active cases of COVID-19 in NITHA communities in Northern Saskatchewan. (NITHA Saskatchewan/Facebook)

All Public Health Measures Extended to May 10

Due to increased COVID-19 transmission risk throughout the province, the Chief Medical Health Officer has extended all current provincial public health orders until May 10. The orders will be reviewed at that time. Full details on current public health measures can be found at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-measures.

All residents are urged to adhere to best personal protective measures:

• Wear your mask in all public places including all workplaces
• Wash non-medical masks daily
• Maintain physical distancing
• Wash your hands frequently
• Reduce activities outside of your home. Order take-out or curbside pick-up. If you are able to work from home, work from home at this time.
• Avoid all unnecessary travel throughout the province at this time

If you have any symptoms, stay home and arrange for a COVID-19 test. If anyone in your home has symptoms, the entire household should remain home until the test results are known. Testing information is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/testing-information.

Weekly Reporting of Testing Numbers and Cases for Youth

The trends of COVID-19 cases in school-aged children are being monitored. The weekly report of cases and testing numbers for children aged 0-19, including data by age and positivity rates, has been posted at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19-Safe-Schools-Plan.

General COVID-19 Information

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

Know your risk. Keep yourself and others safe: www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/about-covid-19/know-your-risk.

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panews@jpbg.ca