As the health crisis continues, Quebec is reporting 1,631 new cases and 88 additional deaths attributable to the novel coronavirus Friday.
Health authorities say 18 of those deaths occurred in the last 24 hours, while the others have been retroactively added to the death toll. They say 37 deaths reported Friday are from a backlog in data spanning from early December to Jan. 17.
The province’s tally of cases now stands at 250,491, which remains the highest in Canada. Meanwhile, recoveries have surpassed 223,000.
Since last March, the pandemic has led to the deaths of 9,361 Quebecers. The death toll represents roughly half of Canada’s fatalities linked to COVID-19.
Read more: Quebec unlikely to ease restrictions as premier credits curfew for drop in COVID-19 cases
Hospitalizations dropped once again by 27 to 1,426. Of those patients, 212 are in intensive care units, a decrease of four from the previous day.
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Health Minister Christian Dubé addressed the situation on social media, saying he is concerned about the number of deaths associated with the virus.
“The number of deaths caused by COVID-19 are still on the rise. We must continue to respect measures to protect the most vulnerable,” he said.
The latest data shows 40,738 tests were given Wednesday. Quebec has administered more than 5.5 million tests to date.
When it comes to its vaccination campaign, the province gave 14,417 doses Thursday. The province’s daily average over the past week stands around 10,500 vaccines per day.
The rollout, which began in December, has seen more than 200,000 people — mostly residents in long-term care centres and health-care workers — been inoculated against the virus.
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