Ontario COVID numbers: 809 people in hospital, 152 in intensive care

The number of people in Ontario with COVID-19 has dropped below 1,000 for the first time since April, according to data released by the province.

New figures show 809 people were in hospital with the virus on Sunday, while 152 were in an Ontario intensive care unit (ICU). The figures represent a drop in hospitalizations compared to the previous day and the previous week.

On Saturday, Ontario reported 1,116 people in hospital and 160 in ICU. Last Sunday, there were 1,024 people in hospital and 151 in an intensive care unit with or due to the virus.

COVID-19 data may be underreported because some hospital networks do not share data over the weekend.

The dip in Ontario’s hospitalizations was accompanied by a lower-than-average death increase. The province reported two further deaths as a result of the virus on Sunday.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 13,161 people have died as a result of COVID-19.

Ontario also announced 1,054 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases on Sunday. That figure, experts say, is likely an underestimate of the true number of cases due to testing restrictions that limit access to PCR tests in the province.

A total of 1,295,499 cases have been reported during the pandemic so far.

The percentage of positive tests reported Sunday increased a fraction compared to Saturday but fell compared to last week. Nine per cent of tests reported on Sunday were positive, compared to 11.2 per cent on May 15.

A total of 91.3 per cent of Ontario residents aged 12 or older have had two COVID-19 vaccine doses, while 60.2 per cent of people aged 18 or older have been boosted.

A grand total of 33,235,491 shots have been administered since the pandemic began.