People wearing face masks line up to pick up free rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits in Markham, Ontario, Canada, on Jan. 11, 2022. Canada reported 16,970 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday noon, elevating its national total to 2,612,250 with 30,946 deaths, according to local media CTV. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
OTTAWA, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Canada reported 16,970 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday noon, elevating its national total to 2,612,250 with 30,946 deaths, according to local media CTV.
Ontario, the most populous province in the country, reported 7,951 new cases and 21 deaths on Tuesday.
The province reported that the number of people in hospitals with COVID-19 rose from 2,497 on Monday to 3,220 on Tuesday, while intensive care unit (ICU) admissions jumped from 438 to 477.
The Ontario Science Table said on Tuesday that the province's people who were fully vaccinated with at least two doses were 77.4 percent less likely to end up in hospitals and 90.5 percent less likely to end up in ICU compared to people who were unvaccinated.
Quebec, the second populous province, announced 8,710 new cases and 62 deaths Tuesday morning.
The province also saw a continued increase of COVID-19 hospitalizations, with a net increase of 188 to 433 patients, including 255 ICU ones.
As COVID-19 cases threaten to overwhelm hospitals in several parts of Canada, doctors have warned that hospitalizations are reaching record highs in some provinces, which could further reduce general hospital care for the foreseeable future.
The hospitals in Ontario are filling up at an alarming rate. There were 480 people in hospital due to COVID-19 two weeks ago. As of Monday, there were nearly 2,500 patients in hospitals, according to Ontario provincial data,
Facing this record-setting rise in cases, Canadian Infrastructure and Communities Minister Dominic LeBlanc told a press briefing last Friday that the Canadian federal government anticipated increasing requests from provinces and territories in the coming weeks and would do everything they could to respond.
On Tuesday, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) called on federal, provincial and territorial governments in the country to work together against the impact of the current wave of COVID-19 amid concerns that rapidly increased Omicron cases may paralyze the health system.
"We know Canadians are tired and frustrated. Physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists, pharmacists, laboratory technologists and other health care providers are beyond exhausted right now. And we need all hands on deck to stabilize our health system to care for COVID patients and all others requiring care," CMA said in a statement.
In a visual meeting Monday afternoon, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and provincial leaders discussed the government's plan to distribute rapid tests and the possibility of additional military support for struggling health care systems.
Canada saw more cases of COVID-19 during the first 40 days of the Omicron wave than it did during the entire first year of the pandemic, according to data from CTV.
There had been 777,609 confirmed new infections since the first case of Omicron was detected in the country on Nov. 29, 2021. In contrast, it took over 370 days to exceed the same number of cases after the very first domestic patient was documented back on Jan. 25, 2020. ■
People wearing face masks line up to pick up free rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits in Markham, Ontario, Canada, on Jan. 11, 2022. Canada reported 16,970 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday noon, elevating its national total to 2,612,250 with 30,946 deaths, according to local media CTV. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
People wearing face masks line up to pick up free rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits in Markham, Ontario, Canada, on Jan. 11, 2022. Canada reported 16,970 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday noon, elevating its national total to 2,612,250 with 30,946 deaths, according to local media CTV. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
People wearing face masks line up to pick up free rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits in Markham, Ontario, Canada, on Jan. 11, 2022. Canada reported 16,970 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday noon, elevating its national total to 2,612,250 with 30,946 deaths, according to local media CTV. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
