COVID-19 outbreaks, hospitalizations, wastewater levels continue to rise in Ottawa

Recent developments:

• Ottawa's coronavirus levels in Ottawa's wastewater continue to climb.
• Hospitalizations, outbreaks and test positivity are also on the rise.

As of July 14 in Ontario, all adults 18 to 59 who had a third shot of a COVID-19 vaccine at least five months ago, or who were infected at least three months ago, are eligible for a fourth dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

Previously, eligible groups included those 60 and older, and First Nations, Métis and Inuit people 18 and older. 

Additionally, Health Canada has approved Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine for infants and preschoolers, making it the first vaccine of its kind approved for that age group in the country.

Coronavirus levels in Ottawa's wastewater are on the rise, with the test positivityrate sitting at just below 20 per cent. 

The region is in the seventh wave of the COVID-19 pandemic driven by the BA.5 coronavirus subvariant. Health officials have said people should get all COVID-19 vaccines they're eligible for, wear masks indoors and follow isolation guidelines.

The latest Ottawa update

Wastewater

The average level of coronavirus in Ottawa's wastewater has been rising for a month. It's higher than the peaks of most previous waves, but below the heights reached in April 2022.

Hospitals

Twenty-seven Ottawa residents with COVID-19 are in local hospitals, according to OPH's latest update. Five of those patients are in intensive care.

The hospitalization figures above don't include all patients. For example, they leave out patients admitted for other reasons who then test positive for COVID-19, those admitted for lingering COVID-19 complications, and those transferred from other health units.

Including those categories, 117 COVID-19 patients were in hospital as of its most recent data. That's up by more than 30 since the previous OPH update. 

Tests, outbreaks and cases

Testing strategies changed under the contagious Omicron variant, meaning many COVID-19 cases aren't reflected in current counts. Public health officials now only track and report outbreaks in health-care settings.

Ottawa's test positivity rate sits at just under 20 per cent, up slightly up from earlier this week. It sat around 10 per cent for most of June before increasing around the start of summer.

There are currently 52 active COVID outbreaks in Ottawa, 19 tied to retirement homes. That number is up from 29 active outbreaks earlier this week. 

OPH reported 444 more cases and three more deaths since the last update earlier this week. Ottawa has surpassed 76,000 recorded cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

Vaccines

As of the most recent weekly update, 93 per cent of Ottawa residents age five and up had at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, and 89 per cent had at least two.

Sixty-four per cent of Ottawans age 12 and over had at least three doses, and 13 per cent had four.

Across the region

Wastewater levels have mixed trends across Leeds, Grenville and Lanark counties,  These levels are slowly rising in the Kingston area, rising in Hawkesbury and stable in Cornwall.

Western Quebec is reporting 68 COVID-19 hospitalizations.

Eastern Ontario communities outside Ottawa are reporting a total of 22 COVID hospitalizations, including four patients in intensive care. Eleven of those patients, including three in an ICU, are in the Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU), which started July with two COVID hospital patients.

That regional total doesn't include Hastings Prince Edward (HPE) Public Health, which has a different counting method. Hospitalizations there are low and stable.

Across eastern Ontario, between 81 and 92 per cent of eligible residents have received at least two vaccine doses, and between 59 and 71 per cent of adults have had at least three.