319 COVID patients in ICUs in Ontario, testing captures 13,339 new cases

Public Health Ontario is reporting 13,339 new COVID cases today, however, that total is likely an underestimate according to the province. 

Increasing COVID case counts driven by omicron have made testing less available, and it has led to the daily totals being an underestimation of actual infections in Ontario. New testing instructions from the province are now limiting testing to certain high-risk groups, leaving symptomatic individuals to isolate but not get a test to confirm whether they have COVID. 

The Jan. 6 updates provided by the province's public health agency and the ministry of health also reported the following data:

• 12,036 recoveries and 20 deaths since yesterday's report.
• There are 135,313 active, lab-confirmed cases.
• The new cases reported today include 1,797 unvaccinated people, 452 partially vaccinated people, and 10,648 fully vaccinated people, 442 cases were reported with vaccination status unknown. 
• 2,279 people are in hospital testing positive for COVID-19. It's not clear how many people were hospitalized for COVID-19. The province has said changes will be made in how these numbers are reported in the coming days.
• Among the hospitalized COVID patients are 436 unvaccinated cases, 96 partially vaccinated cases, and 1,156 fully vaccinated cases.
• The seven-day average by vaccination status indicated 78 cases per 100,000 unvaccinated people, 74 cases per 100,000 partially vaccinated people, and 102 cases per 100,000 fully vaccinated people. 
• 319 people are in ICU due to COVID-19. Of those, 307 people are testing positive and 12 are testing negative. There are 164 people in an intensive care unit (ICU) on a ventilator because of COVID. 
• Included in the ICU cases are 123 unvaccinated cases, 28 partially vaccinated cases, and 87 fully vaccinated cases. 
• 11.4 million people in Ontario (77 per cent of the population) are fully vaccinated, and five per cent of the province has one dose of COVID vaccine.
• The province reported 59,241 tests were processed yesterday, resulting in a 29.2 per cent positivity rate.
• Today's new cases include 307 children under five, 639 kids ages five to 11 years old, 1,068 youth between 12 and 19 years old, 5,522 people between 20 and 39 years old, 3,866 people between 40 and 59 years old, 1,484 people between 60 and 79 years old, and 449 people over 80 years old.

Public Health Ontario has confirmed 841,371 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, and reported 696,786 recoveries and 10,272 deaths.

The cumulative average incidence rate in the province is 5,710.4 cases per 100,000 people in Ontario.

Ontario's average seven-day incidence rate from Dec. 27 to Jan. 2 was 679.4 cases per 100,000 people, which increased 60.6 per cent over the seven-day period starting on Dec. 21.

For more on the province's breakdown of vaccination status, click here.

Northern Ontario

According to provincial data, in the north there are currently 56 people with COVID-19 in hospital, down from 61 yesterday. There are 12 people in ICU (up from 11 yesterday) and seven people on ventilators, up from six yesterday.

In Northern Ontario, the breakdown of Public Health Ontario data for cases and vaccination is:

• Algoma Public Health: 2,395 cases, weekly rate of 394.6 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 2,401 cases. There are 616 known active cases. There are five people in hospital, including one person who is from out of region but in Algoma. Of the eligible population five years and older, 86 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 80 per cent have both doses.
• North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit: 1,868 cases, weekly rate of 374.3 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 1,865 cases. There are 458 known active cases and no hospitalizations. Of the eligible population five years and older, 84 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 79 per cent have both doses.
• Porcupine Health Unit: 3,361 cases, weekly rate of 707.1 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 3,335 cases. There are 817 known active cases. The health unit does not report hospitalizations. Of the eligible population five years and older, 86 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 78 per cent have both doses.
• Public Health Sudbury and Districts: 6,261 cases, weekly rate of 552.5 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 6,368 cases. There are 1,181 known active cases. As of Jan. 4, there were 22 COVID-positive patients at Health Sciences North. Of the eligible population five years and older, 87 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 81 per cent have both doses.
• Timiskaming Health Unit: 745 cases, weekly rate of 451.5 cases per 100,000 people.  The health unit has reported 789 cases. There are 238 known active cases and one hospitalization. Of the eligible population five years and older, 84 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 78 per cent have both doses.
• Northwestern Health Unit: 2,121 cases, weekly rate of 585.1 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 2,160 cases. There are 439 known active cases and five hospitalizations. Of the eligible population five years and older, 93 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 85 per cent have both doses.
• Thunder Bay District Health Unit: 4,687 cases, weekly rate of 377.9 cases per 100,000 people. The health unit has reported 4,666 cases. There are 276 known active cases and nine hospitalizations. Of the eligible population five years and older, 87 per cent of people have at least one dose of the vaccine and 81 per cent have both doses.

The data from Northern Ontario health units is based on what was available at 10:30 a.m. today.