3 MUSKOKA COVID CASES DATING TO LAST WEEK AMONG 81 TODAY

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

SIMCOE-MUSKOKA — Three more people in Muskoka are among 81 new COVID cases reported today — dating back almost a week now.

The health unit says that as of yesterday, Jan. 12, the cases posted on its website will now be reported based on the date reported to the public health unless otherwise specified.

The date publicly reported by the health unit will no longer be used.

The left hand column is the date reported by the health unit and the one next to it is the “Accurate Episode Date.”

According to the health unit the Accurate Episode Date is “the date the case reported onset of COVID-19 symptoms or when symptom onset date is not available, the date of testing or date reported to public health.”

New health unit reporting shows the public reporting date, left, and next to it the date ‘Accurate Episode Date,’ which offer more date about when the person may have first had symptoms of was tested, says the health unit.

A case in Gravenhurst last Thursday, Jan. 7, was a male aged 35-44 and is under investigation as to its cause.

Two other cases Friday Jan. 8 include another Gravenhurst man also aged 35-44 and again it is under investigation.

And a case in Muskoka Lakes that day did not show the gender of the person under investigation.

That’s 195 cases this week, compared to 491 last week, says the health unit.

There are 1,205 active cases, including 37 in hospital.

They are among 2,971 cases in Ontario where 74 people died. Monday and Tuesday 41 people and 29 people died respectively in the province.

Active cases in Ontario are up to 3,465 from 3,113 last week.

Toronto saw 789 cases, Peel 536, York 219, Hamilton 171 and Windsor-Essex 219.

These as Ontario begins a state of emergency and stay at home order tonight — at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.

And dire predictions in the next two weeks show 100 possible deaths daily and 1,000 people in ICUs, which is half of Ontario’s hospital total.

NOTES:

Vaccinations continue this week at LTCs in Muskoka and Simcoe North. With 451 injections yesterday that brings the total since Dec. 22 for health-care workers and now residents starting this week to 8,616.

IN OTHER COVID NEWS:

Quebec reported 2,071 cases and 35 deaths; Manitoba 158 cases and 5 deaths.

London, Ont. CEO Paul Woods who was fired for five trips to the U.S. last year is suing for $2.5M claiming bad faith after he says hospital board knew of trips.

In the U.S. a record 4,327 people died yesterday from COVID-19.

Going for a healthy walk or taking your dog out after dark won’t be against the law as Ontario’s state of emergency and stay at home order takes effect at midnight tonight.

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