The province reported an increase in St. Albert COVID-19 cases last week.
Data from the province showed the seven-day case rate per 100,000 for St. Albert was 168.1, as reported on April 13. This is an increase from the 153.8 seven-day case rate per 100,000 reported on April 6.
The number of new cases in seven days in St. Albert as reported by the province on April 13 was 117, up from 107 cases reported on April 6.
The province reported no new deaths in St. Albert on April 13. A total of 73 St. Albertans have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
Data from the province showed the seven-day case rate per 100,000 in Sturgeon County was 214.8, which is a significant increase from the 111 seven-day case rate per 100,000 in the county reported on April 6.
The number of new cases in the county has nearly doubled. The province reported 60 new COVID cases on April 13, compared to the 31 cases reported in the county on April 6.
The total number of people who have died from COVID-19 in Sturgeon County is 18.
COVID-19 case rates have also increased in Morinville. The province reported the seven-day new case rate per 100,000 for Morinville was 140.2 on April 13 compared to the 131.4 seven-day new case rate per 100,000 reported on April 6.
Fifteen Morinville residents have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
On April 12, the chief public health officer of Canada, Dr. Theresa Tam, said Canada is in a sixth COVID-19 wave.
“Multiple indicators from average daily case counts to lab test positivity, and wastewater signals indicate increasing transmission in recent weeks. Unfortunately, we're now beginning to see rising severity trends as well,” said Tam.
Tam said some degree of increased transmission was to be expected in the weeks since public-health measures across the country eased.
During an April 13 COVID update, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, also said the COVID increases reported across the province are not unexpected as measures eased and regular activities started up again.
“We continue to track Omicron and its subvariant BA.2 in our province as well as evidence of the effectiveness of different interventions relative to different variants,” Hinshaw said.
The use of the anti-viral Sotrovimab is being paused as a treatment for COVID-19, as there is uncertainty about whether it is an effective treatment against the BA.2 subvariant.
BA.2 is the dominant COVID variant in the province, and makes up more than 80 per cent of all new cases.
“We have had to shift our approach in treating [BA.2],” said Hinshaw.
Hinshaw said individuals who have taken the anti-viral should not be concerned, as it is still a safe medication and does provide some benefits.
“Going forward, while we continue to monitor the emerging evidence on Sotrovimab, we will be using both Paxlovid and Remdesivir as options for those who can benefit from early outpatient treatment of COVID-19,” she said.
Hinshaw encouraged those who have mild COVID symptoms to go online to look for eligibility criteria for treatment of COVID-19.
“I want to reinforce that while these medications are important, anti-virals are not meant to replace vaccination,” she said.
Hinshaw also said the National Advisory Committee has updated its booster recommendations, highlighting that it is strongly recommended anyone over the age of 18 receive a third COVID vaccination.
Anyone who is at significant risk for severe outcomes from COVID is now eligible to book their second COVID booster dose.
“If you’ve been infected with COVID-19 and still need a first or second booster, we do recommend waiting three months to get it,” said Hinshaw.
Hinshaw also asked that Albertans “consider masking in public places as a prudent step we can take to protect ourselves and those around us.”
Hinshaw said from the period between April 5 to April 11, the PCR test positivity ranged from 24.3 per cent to 29.8 per cent.
The province reported 1,053 Albertans with COVID-19 in hospital, including 48 in the ICU.
Hinshaw said between April 5 and April 11, an average of about five deaths per day related to COVID-19 were reported to Alberta Health.
Data from the province showed 4,141 Albertans have died from COVID-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
