Quebec reached a grim milestone of more than 14,000 deaths since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic after the province reported 20 additional fatalities Wednesday.
Hospitalizations related to the health crisis plummeted. The total stood at 1,381, a drop of 58 compared with the previous day. This includes 82 patients in intensive care, a decrease of eight.
Officials say 88 people entered and 146 were discharged from hospitals across the province in the past 24 hours.
Quebec also reported 1,630 new cases, though this number isn’t reflective of the current situation since only high-risk groups can access government-run PCR testing sites.
A total of 17,424 tests were administered at those sites on Monday, the most recent day for which that information is available.
Quebecers registered the results of 385 rapid tests in the last day, including 297 positive results. More than 99,000 rapid test results have been declared by the population since the website was launched last month.
When it comes to the immunization rollout, another 7,089 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were given in the last 24 hours. Since the beginning of the campaign, more than 18.4 million shots have been administered.
The province’s caseload stood at 924,309 in the latest update, while the death toll reached 14,016. Recoveries from the virus surpassed 895,000.
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Meanwhile, the latest projections from Quebec’s public health research institute indicate that the government’s reopening plan should not trigger a significant rise in hospitalizations in the greater Montreal area.
Quebec is set to lift nearly all restrictions across the province by March 14.
— with files from The Canadian Press