Quebec adds 703 new coronavirus cases, 13 more deaths as intensive care numbers rise

In Quebec, officials are reporting 703 new COVID-19 infections and 13 additional deaths Wednesday.

The public health institute is confirming 19 more cases involving variants of concern, for a total of 541, most of which involve the mutation first identified in the United Kingdom. It says it has detected 2,352 presumptive variant cases, a rise of 173, to date.

The province has seen a total of 299,450 cases over the course of the health crisis. Meanwhile, there have been more than 282,000 recoveries to date.

The pandemic has led to the deaths of 10,570 Quebecers, but the tally was amended after a death that was previously reported was removed from the list following an investigation.

The province has the highest death count in the country, representing nearly half of Canada’s fatalities related to the novel coronavirus.

Hospitalizations dropped by one to 532. Of those patients, there are 107 in intensive care units, a rise of 16 from the previous day.

When it comes to vaccination, 28,812 more doses were administered Tuesday for a total of 804,806 to date. The province has received 1,050,355 doses so far.

Quebec Premier François Legault vowed on Tuesday that anyone who wants a shot will get one by June 24. The government is aiming to vaccinate all people who are 65 and older by mid-April.

In the same announcement, Legault said the overnight curfew in Montreal and its surrounding regions is being pushed back Wednesday night to 9:30 p.m. from 8 p.m.

The latest screening information shows 33,728 tests were given Monday.

— With files from The Canadian Press