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COVID-19: MLHU adds 4 cases, says 34.8% of residents 12+ fully vaccinated

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Jump to: HospitalizationsOutbreaksVaccinations and testingOntarioElgin and OxfordHuron and PerthSarnia and Lambton


The Middlesex-London Health Unit is reporting four new COVID-19 cases, though its total case count only increased by two on Tuesday, likely due to data clean-up.

The total case count stands at 12,599 with 54 active cases. The number of recoveries climbed by seven to 12,319.

Five more variant cases have been flagged for a total of 3,487.

The breakdown of variant cases is as follows:

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  • 3,359 cases of the Alpha variant (B.1.1.7), first identified in the U.K.
  • 96 cases of the Gamma (P.1) variant, first identified in Brazil
  • 20 cases of the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant, first identified in India
  • two cases of the Beta (B.1.351) variant, first identified in South Africa
  • one case of the Kappa (B.1.617.1) variant, first identified in India
  • one case of the Zeta (P.2) variant, first identified in Brazil

There are also two cases listed only as B.1.617 and one case listed as B.1.617.3.

A total of 11,398 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in London since the pandemic began, while 360 have been in Middlesex Centre and 335 in Strathroy-Caradoc.

Further information can be found on the health unit’s Summary of COVID-19 Cases in Middlesex-London page.

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Hospitalizations

The London Health Sciences Centre says it is caring for at 11 inpatients with COVID-19 as of Tuesday, an increase of two from Monday, with fewer than five in the ICU.

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Of those, no patients in acute care are from outside of the region and fewer than five in the ICU are from outside of the region. In an effort to protect the privacy of patients, LHSC only provides specific numbers when there are more than five.

Fewer than five staff members currently have COVID-19.

At St. Joseph’s Health Care London, the organization reported no current COVID-19 cases among its patients or staff.

Institutional outbreaks

The MLHU is not reporting any institutional outbreaks, however, there is an outbreak tied to indoor gatherings at Christ Embassy Church at 1472 Dundas St. in London.

As of Monday, six cases were associated with the outbreak, though medical officer of health Dr. Chris Mackie said the health unit was awaiting “a number of tests of people who were contacts.”

Anyone who attended any indoor gatherings at the church between June 20 and June 30 is asked to monitor themselves for symptoms of COVID-19 and to get tested if symptoms develop.

Vaccinations and testing

The MLHU released updated data on vaccine coverage in the region on Tuesday.

The data, which is dated to the end of the day on July 3, shows that 76.7 per cent of residents age 12 and older have had at least one dose while 34.8 per cent are fully vaccinated.

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As of the end of day July 3, 502,545 doses of COVID-19 had been administered in the region.

On Monday, Mackie noted that roughly 100,000 of those doses were administered in just the last two weeks.

He also stressed the importance of vaccination, stating that of the roughly 200 COVID-19 cases the health unit reported in the same time frame, 92 per cent involved people were unvaccinated while the remaining eight per cent involved people who were only partially vaccinated.

MLHU data showing COVID-19 vaccine coverage among residents as of the end of day July 3, 2021. via Middlesex-London Health Unit

Information on second-dose re-booking eligibility and how to cancel appointments can be found on the health unit’s website.

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Information on local pharmacies offering COVID-19 vaccines can be found on the province’s website.

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One-day pop-up community clinics at select schools in the city and county wrap up Tuesday with a clinic at Strathroy District Collegiate Institute in Strathroy.

During Monday afternoon’s scheduled media briefing, officials said a one-day walk-in clinic will be held Thursday at Citi Plaza in downtown London.

Those looking to test to see if they have COVID-19 can find information about locations of testing sites on the health unit’s website.

The test positivity rate in the region fell to 0.7 per cent for the week of June 20, down from 1.2 per cent for the week of June 13.

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Ontario

Ontario reported 164 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, marking the smallest daily increase since Sept. 9, 2020.

However, 80 cases from Toronto in 2020 were added to the count which officially registered 244 cases for Tuesday. The provincial case total now stands at 546,217.

According to Tuesday’s report, 112 cases were recorded in Toronto (80 were from last year), 26 in Peel Region, 25 in Waterloo Region, 13 in York Region and 10 in Grey Bruce.

All other local public health units reported fewer than 10 new cases in the provincial report.

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The death toll in the province has risen to 9,224 as nine more deaths were recorded.

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Provincially, 78.4 per cent of adults (18+) have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine while 47.8 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Elgin and Oxford

Southwestern Public Health reported three new cases and two more recoveries on Tuesday, bringing the total to 3,891 with 3,791 listed as resolved.

The number of deaths is unchanged at 83. At least 17 cases are currently active.

Per-municipality case counts can be found on the health unit’s dashboard.

Four people are hospitalized with two in the ICU. On Monday, SWPH reported three people in hospital, all in the ICU.

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One additional variant case was confirmed, bringing that total to 813. Of those, 750 involve the Alpha variant.

There are no active institutional outbreaks reported in the region.

The region’s test positivity rate fell to 1.2 per cent for the week of June 20, down from 1.5 per cent for the week of June 13 but still above the 0.9 per cent recorded the week of June 6.

As of Monday, SWPH says 63.2 per cent of residents age 12 and older have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while 27.6 per cent are fully vaccinated.

All individuals aged 12 and up are eligible to re-book their second appointment through the online booking portal or by phone at 1-800-922-0096 ext. 9, provided that second-dose appointments are booked at least 28 days after the first dose of an mRNA vaccine was administered.

The health unit is also still encouraging people to add their names to a same-day vaccination list.

Several pharmacies in the region are also continuing to offer COVID-19 vaccine.

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Huron and Perth

Huron-Perth Public Health reported no new cases on Tuesday, leaving the total case count at 1,904.

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Case counts by municipality can be found on the health unit’s dashboard.

One more recovery was reported, for a total of 1,834, while 13 cases are active.

The number of deaths is unchanged at 57, while the number of cases involving a variant of concern increased by one to 319.

One person is currently hospitalized with COVID-19, unchanged from Monday.

There are no active institutional outbreaks reported in the region.

The region’s test positivity rate fell to 0.6 per cent for the week of June 20, down from 1.0 per cent for the week of June 13.

According to HPPH, 73.8 per cent of residents had received at least one dose of vaccine, while 39.1 per cent are fully vaccinated as of Tuesday.

Information on vaccine eligibility and booking an appointment can be found on HPPH’s website. Specific information on booking a second dose of vaccine can also be found on the health unit’s website.

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Sarnia and Lambton

Lambton Public Health reported two new COVID-19 cases and eight recoveries on Tuesday.

The region’s total case count stands at 3,614 with 11 active cases, 3,541 recoveries and 62 deaths.

According to Bluewater Health, three patients in their care are confirmed to have COVID-19, an increase of one from Monday.

The region’s variant case tally is 648 as of Tuesday, an increase of one from Monday.

An outbreak declared June 25 at Afton Park Place, a long-term care home, continues. It involves fewer than five cases among residents and fewer than five cases among staff and caregivers.

The region’s test positivity rate climbed to 2.0 per cent for the week of June 20, up from 1.8 per cent for the week of June 13.

For the COVID-19 vaccine, residents can book and re-book using the health unit’s registration page. People can also call the vaccine call centre at 226-254-8222, however, call volume is expected to be very high.

Some pharmacies are also continuing to offer Pfizer or Moderna shots.

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Lambton Public Health says 73.3 per cent of adults have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 43.6 per cent of adults are fully vaccinated.

— With files from Global News’ Gabby Rodrigues and Matthew Trevithick

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