For a second consecutive day, Quebec is reporting a record-breaking number of daily COVID-19 cases with 2,247 new infections on Wednesday.
That brings the total caseload in the province since the start of the novel coronavirus pandemic to 183,523.
Quebec continues to lead the country in fatalities linked to the illness.
On Wednesday, health authorities recorded 74 more COVID-19-related deaths for a total of 7,867 — almost double that of Ontario at 4,229. All other provinces and territories have recorded fewer than 1,000 deaths.
Vaccination efforts which began on Dec. 14 in two long-term care facilities (CHSLDs) in Montreal and Quebec City were extended to other regions earlier this week.
Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé said vaccination has now begun in the Saguenay, the Mauricie, the Outaouais, the Laurentians and the Lanaudière regions.
To date, 7,229 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, including 1,891 doses on Tuesday.
Under the provincial vaccination rollout plan, residents and staff of long-term care homes, which were especially hard-hit in the first wave of the pandemic, are at the top of the priority list to receive the vaccine.
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On Wednesday, the federal government announced it has set aside an additional $70 million to assist the Red Cross in the fight against COVID-19, through various programs, including supporting vaccination efforts across the country and maintaining Red Cross volunteers in long-term care facilities in Quebec and Ontario.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said some 500 Red Cross workers will remain on duty in Quebec CHSLDs until March 31, 2021.
“By this date, Quebec should be in a position to fully assume management of its CHSLDs and regain control of the situation,” said Trudeau during an Ottawa press conference.
The Red Cross first began lending a helping hand in Quebec care homes in May. Part of the humanitarian agency’s role was to train volunteers to take over from Canadian Armed Forces soldiers that were deployed to curb catastrophic COVID-19 outbreaks in several CHSLDs.
Pressure continues to mount in the health network, with hospitalizations remaining above the 1,000 mark on Wednesday. Twelve more COVID-19 patients required care in the last 24 hours for a total of 1,067. Of those, 142 are in intensive care, five more than reported on Tuesday.
During a press conference Tuesday, Premier François Legault and opposition party leaders put aside their political differences and showed a united front in the fight against COVID-19.
They urged Quebecers to show solidarity with health-care workers and respect public health guidelines during the holiday season.
The premier noted that more than 7,000 health-care workers are on sick leave, creating additional stress on the network.
“We need to help our health workers and to do that we need to follow the rules to avoid increasing the number of COVID patients in our hospitals,” Legault said.
The premier also exhorted against travelling abroad for non-essential trips.
“If it’s not necessary, don’t go,” he said.
Legault, however, said it’s difficult to stop people from travelling when borders with other countries remain open, adding that that decision falls under federal jurisdiction.
He added that discussions with Ottawa are ongoing on how to ensure passengers returning from abroad respect strict quarantine rules.
A two-week shutdown of non-essential businesses, aimed at curbing the spread of the virus in the province, begins Dec. 25.
— With files from The Canadian Press
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