Community transmission affecting youth more than school transmission

Since Sept. 1, Dr. Hinshaw says there has been a week-over-week decrease in positive tests with school-aged children from 205 to 183 to 122, with over 11,000, 18,000 and 14,000 children tested in those three weeks respectively.

The overall positivity rate of Covid-19 in Alberta is 1.02 per cent — with about one person in 100 tested confirmed positive.

Dr. Hinshaw touched on the dire impact the pandemic has had on those with addiction problems. In the first half of 2020, 449 people died of unintentional opioid poisoning — 301 of those deaths occurred between April and June.

She said work continues on providing access to addiction services and encouraged people to check on family and friends who may be impacted. If you, or someone you know, is in need of help, the 24-hour call line is 1-866-332-2322.

The Pincher Creek region has one active case of Covid-19 and Crowsnest Pass remains at zero.

In total, 17,190 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Alberta. Today’s update includes 158 new cases confirmed from 12,765 tested.

The provincial recovery rate is about 90 per cent as 15,467 have recovered from the virus.

The number of active cases in Alberta has decreased by 58 to 1,462.

To date, there have been 261 Covid-19 related deaths in Alberta, with one new death reported today.

There are 58 people hospitalized, with 14 in intensive care.

Dr. Hinshaw reported today that 13 schools that previously had alerts (one positive case of Covid-19 confirmed) have had no transmission and students and staff are now back in class.

She stressed again today that “an outbreak is not a sign that a school is unsafe.”

There are currently 163 active cases in 97 Alberta schools.

Of those, 65 schools with 69 cases are on alert.

Thirty-two schools have declared outbreaks, with two or more confirmed cases in individuals who have been present at a school in the past 14 days. Of these, seven have likely had transmission within the school.

Four are under “watch” status (five or more cases) and the others have “open” status.

The outbreak at Chinook High School in Lethbridge remains listed as “open” on the province’s school outbreak map and is the only one in the south zone.

The Government of Alberta school outbreak map can be found at https://bit.ly/2FeS3FR. It currently identifies schools with two or more confirmed cases.

When a single case is confirmed to have been present at a school while infectious, and any time an outbreak of two or more cases is declared, all parents and guardians will receive a letter from AHS through their school informing them of the situation, the actions being taken and steps that will follow.

South Zone Information – 1,817 total cases

40 active, 4 new, 2 recoveries

1,752 people (about 96 per cent of confirmed south zone cases) have recovered from Covid-19.

Twenty-five people have died since the onset of the pandemic in March.

Two people are currently hospitalized and are both in intensive care.

Methanex Corporation in Medicine Hat is the zone’s only public outbreak site.

The County of 40 Mile remains under “watch” status with 11 active cases in a population of 6, 443 (equivalent to 170.7 in 100,000). Gathering restrictions and public health orders are in place but no further health measures have been put in place.

Community Breakdown for Thursday, Sept. 24

Data is up-to-date as of midnight Sept. 23

* Indicates a change in statistics since the last report

Pincher Creek Region (27 total) – 1 active, 25 recovered, 1 death

Crowsnest Pass (2 total) – 0 active, 2 recovered

Fort Macleod (33 total) – 0 active, 30 recovered, 3 deaths

Cardston County/Kainai (105 total) – 2 active, 98 recovered, 5 deaths

I.D. Waterton (0)

Lethbridge (169 total) – 1 active, 166 recovered, 2 deaths
* 1 new recovery

Lethbridge County (48 total) – 6 active, 42 recovered
* 2 new active

County of Warner (63 total) – 1 active, 61 recovered, 1 death
* 1 new active

MD of Taber (42 total) – 3 active, 39 recovered

City of Brooks (1,132 total) – 6 active, 1,117 recovered, 9 deaths

County of Newell (32 total) – 0 active, 30 recovered, 2 deaths

County of Forty Mile (37 total) – 11 active, 26 recovered
* 1 new active

Cypress County (31 total) – 0 active, 31 recovered

Medicine Hat (82 total) – 9 active, 71 recovered, 2 deaths
* 1 new recovery

Oyen (13 total) – 0 active, 13 recovered

*** Pincher Creek Region includes the Town of Pincher Creek; MD of Pincher Creek and its hamlets of Beaver Mines, Lowland Heights, Lundbreck, Pincher Station and Twin Butte; the Village of Cowley and Piikani Nation.

All Covid-positive cases are followed up urgently by Alberta Health Services. If you have a positive test, you will be contacted directly by AHS. The Communicable Disease Control team does confidential contact tracing and follows stringent guidelines to determine who is considered a close contact. Those people will be contacted directly.

If you have a positive test, you are not expected to do your own contact tracing and are discouraged from doing so as many factors determine who is considered to be a close contact.

If you have not been contacted by AHS, you are not considered to be a close contact of a positive Covid-19 case.

School classifications are “open,” “watch,” and “enhanced.”

Open – No schools in this area have outbreaks of five or more cases. Schools remain open under Scenario 1, with near-normal operations with some public health measures. Parents may have received an alert from their school. AHS may be working with local schools, but any additional measures are localized and targeted.

Watch – School outbreak declared with five or more cases where disease could have been acquired or transmitted in the school. Schools remain open under Scenario 1 with the province monitoring risk and working with the school, school authority and AHS. Additional public health measures may be in the place within a school to control the spread.

Enhanced – Risk levels require enhanced measures to control the spread at a school or school authority level. Schools may be moved to Scenario 2 (in-school classes partially operating) or Scenario 3 (at-home learning).

Residents are to continue following all public health orders and gathering restrictions:

• Minimum mandatory isolation for 14 days for anyone who is a close contact of someone with Covid-19, or who return to, or entered Alberta from outside of Canada
• Minimum mandatory isolation for 10 days for anyone who has a confirmed case of Covid-19 or symptoms that are not related to a pre-existing illness or health condition: cough, fever, shortness or breath, runny nose or sore throat
• Gatherings are limited to 50 people for indoor social events (such as weddings and funerals), 100 for outdoor social events and indoor seated/audience events, and 200 for audience-type community outdoor events.
• No additional measures are currently in place but people are to continue maintaining physical distancing of two metres from people outside of one’s own household or cohort and to continue practising good hand hygiene.
• The province’s relaunch status map can be viewed at COVID-19 relaunch status map | alberta.ca

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Statistical updates will be provided on weekdays and paused on weekends and holidays to coincide with AHS reporting. Should something urgent happen on a weekend or holiday, a special report will be released.