370 new coronavirus cases, 84 deaths in Ontario as total cases reach 17,923

Ontario reported 370 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Monday, bringing the provincial total to 17,923 cases.

The death toll has risen to 1,300 as 84 more deaths were reported.

Meanwhile, 12,505 people have recovered from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, which is 69.8 per cent of cases.

Monday’s report marks an increase of 2.1 per cent in total cumulative cases, compared to the day prior.

The province has completed 342,060 tests so far for the virus. This is up 14,555 tests from the previous day. The Ontario government said it had a target of 14,000 daily tests by the end of April and 16,000 tests by May 6.

At a daily press briefing, Premier Doug Ford celebrated how far the province has come to increasing the capacity for testing.

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“We’ve been working around the clock to establish a vast and robust testing regime, which is critical in our fight against this deadly virus,” Ford said on Monday.

“We’re now exceeding our target of 16,000 tests a day, with many of those tests aimed at protecting our long-term care residents and staff. This important milestone provides a strong foundation for gradually reopening our economy and getting people back to work, while protecting the health and safety of all Ontarians.”

Ontario has 984 patients (down by 26) hospitalized due to COVID-19, with 225 patients in an intensive care unit (down by seven) and 175 patients in ICUs on a ventilator (up by one).

According to the Ministry of Long-Term Care, there have been 972 deaths reported among residents and patients in long-term care homes across Ontario, which is up by 18 deaths, and there are 175 outbreaks.

The ministry also indicated there are 2,751 confirmed cases among long-term care residents and 1,619 cases among staff.

Ontario officials have said there may be a discrepancy between overall deaths and deaths at long-term care homes due to how the province’s health database system, called iPHIS, is tracking data and how the Ministry of Long-Term Care is tracking data.

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Health-care workers in Ontario account for 2,761 of the total reported cases, which is 15.4 per cent of the infected population.

Greater Toronto Area public health units account for 60.1 per cent of all cases in the province.

Here is a breakdown of Ontario cases by gender and age:

• 7,453 people are male (41.6 per cent)
• 10,312 people are female (57.5 per cent)
• 431 people are 19 and under (2.4 per cent)
• 4,156 people are 20 to 39 (23.2 per cent)
• 5,403 people are 40 to 59 (30.1 per cent)
• 3,939 people are 60 to 79 (22 per cent)
• 3,984 people are 80 and over (22.2 per cent)

There are 6,265 people currently under investigation awaiting test results.

The newly reported numbers are valid as of 2 p.m. Sunday for Toronto and 4 p.m. for the rest of the province.