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Manitoba reports 3 additional coronavirus deaths, 126 new cases

Dr. Jazz Atwal, acting deputy Manitoba chief public health officer, speaks at the province's COVID-19 update at the Manitoba legislature in Winnipeg, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

Health officials say another three Manitobans with COVID-19 have died and 126 new infections have been identified.

The latest cases announced on the province’s online COVID-19 portal Wednesday bring the province’s total number of cases reported since March to 29,858 after one previously announced case was removed from the list due to a data correction.

Since March, 835 Manitobans have now died from COVID-19.

The province reported 83 cases Tuesday, Manitoba’s lowest daily case count since mid-October.

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No new deaths were reported Tuesday due to what health officials called a “data reset.” They said the latest deaths virus would be updated and reported Wednesday.

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The deaths reported Wednesday include two women from the Winnipeg area, one in her 70s and another in her 80s, as well as a woman in her 90s linked to an outbreak at Heritage Life Personal Care Home in the Southern Health region.

Wednesday’s new infections include 32 cases in the Winnipeg Health region, eight cases in the Southern Health region, seven cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region, 55 cases in the Northern Health region, and 24 cases in the Interlake-Eastern Health region.

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Provincial data also shows there are currently 3,358 active cases and 25,665 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19.

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The five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 6.9 per cent provincially and 3.9 per cent in Winnipeg as of Wednesday morning.

There are now 260 people in hospital as a result of novel coronavirus and 34 patients in ICU connected to the virus, according to provincial data.

Health officials said outbreaks have ended at Lions Prairie Manor Personal Care Home in Portage la Prairie, as well as at Actionmarguerite St. Joseph and Park Manor Personal Care Home, both in Winnipeg.

Laboratory testing numbers show 1,833 tests were completed Tuesday, bringing the total number of lab tests completed since early February 2020 to 482,110.

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Meanwhile, health officials said Wednesday Manitoba is prepared to start giving out up to 20,000 vaccine doses a day next month, but issues with the supply mean they don’t know how many the province will get.

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The mass vaccination plans will largely rely on supersites in multiple cities, as well as pop-up clinics and special teams going directly to targeted groups.

Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the vaccine task force, says Manitoba ranks second in the country for the number of people fully immunized per capita.

To date, 43,318 doses have been administered in Manitoba, including 10,466 of the second dose.

–With files from The Canadian Press

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

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To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.

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