Ontario is reporting 3,630 people are in hospital with COVID on Thursday, though just over half of them were initially admitted due to complications with the virus.
The Ontario government recently released data this week differentiating between those who were admitted to hospital due to a COVID-related illness and incidental admissions.
Of the 3,630 people in hospital with COVID-19, which is up by 182 since yesterday, around 54 per cent of them were admitted because of the virus, while about 46 per cent were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for COVID-19.
The province also reported of the hospitalizations, there are 500 people in ICUs, which is down by 5 from the previous day. Around 82 per cent of those in intensive care were admitted because of COVID, while around 18 per cent were admitted for other reasons.
Hospitalizations for people with COVID in Ontario have reached an all-time high, up from 2,279 reported last Thursday.
For vaccination status among hospitalizations, 698 were unvaccinated, 179 were partially vaccinated and 1,894 were fully vaccinated. For patients in ICUs, 165 were unvaccinated while 15 were partially vaccinated and 181 were fully vaccinated. This dataset will grow and improve over time, officials noted.
In population comparison, while the majority of Ontarians are vaccinated, those who are unvaccinated are still far more likely to land in hospital or ICU than the vaccinated, according to Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table.
Ontario COVID cases, deaths, vaccinations, recoveries, testing
Meanwhile, Ontario also reported 9,909 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, though that is an underestimate of the true widespread transmission of the virus due to recent testing restrictions. The provincial case total now stands at 915,940.
Of the 9,909 new cases recorded, the data showed 1,336 were unvaccinated people, 303 were partially vaccinated people, 7,753 were fully vaccinated people. For 517 people the vaccination status was unknown.
The death toll in the province has risen to 10,480 as 35 more virus-related deaths were added from over the past month.
There are a total of 783,214 recoveries, which is around 83 per cent of known cases. Resolved cases increased by 19,816 from the previous day.
For vaccinations, of the aged 12 and older population, 88.6 per cent are fully vaccinated. First dose coverage stands at 91.2 per cent. Third dose immunization is at 40 per cent — more than 5.1 million Ontarians have received a booster shot.
For young children aged five to 11, first dose coverage stands at 47.9 per cent with 4.7 per cent who are now fully vaccinated.
The province administered 164,160 doses in the last day.
The government said 58,831 tests were processed in the previous 24 hours. Test positivity rate stands at 21.4 per cent. There are 79,521 tests currently under investigation.
Cases, deaths and outbreaks in Ontario long-term care homes
According to the Ontario Ministry of Long-Term Care, there have been 3,884 deaths reported among residents and patients in long-term care homes across Ontario, which an increase of 9 deaths since the previous day. Thirteen virus-related deaths in total have been reported among staff.
There are 311 current outbreaks in homes, which is up by 21 from the previous day.
The ministry also indicated there are currently 1,905 active cases among long-term care residents and 3,609 active cases among staff — up by 166 and up by 355, respectively, in the last day.
— With files from Ryan Rocca