6 MUSKOKA CASES AS ONTARIANS 18+ CAN BOOK VACCINE TOMORROW

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

SIMCOE-MUSKOKA — As vaccines open to all Ontarians 18+ tomorrow, Simcoe-Muskoka is reporting almost 40 per cent of its adult population has received one shot and close to 4 per cent a second shot.

This as they report 141 cases over the weekend — 6 of them in Muskoka.

That starts the week with 39 as of yesterday.

The half dozen Muskoka cases include 3 in Muskoka Lakes, 2 in Bracebridge and 1 in Muskoka.

They are:

  1. Muskoka Lakes woman, 45-64, close contact, reported May 16, first episode May 15
  2. Bracebridge male, under 18, close contact, reported May 15, first episode May 8
  3. Bracebridge male, 18-34, close contact, reported May 15, first episode May 8
  4. Muskoka Lakes man, 35-44, outbreak, reported May 15, first episode May 13
  5. Gravenhurst woman, 18-34, close contact, reported May 14, first episode May 5
  6. Muskoka Lakes woman, 18-34, community acquired, reported May 13, first episode May 5

There’s also news today that Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaws will begin selling rapid COVID tests for $40 that offer results in 15-20 minutes. But they are not quite the same as the ones offered at provincial testing centres.

Meanwhile, summer camp cleanup begins in earnest today as Ontario hints more strongly that it will allow sleep-overs and day-camps after Canada Day.

And there’s an emerging backlash in the States aimed at people who don’t plan to take their masks off — maybe for years to come.

HEALTH UNIT HIGHLIGHTS:

  • 11,415 COVID cases to date
  • 39 cases this week, 339 last week, which was a 23 per cent drop from 443 the week before
  • 14 deaths in May, 25 in April, 12 in March
  • 3,353 UK variants, 87 Brazil, 19 South Africa), 1 India)
  • 713 people await confirmation on VOC
  • 267,450+ vaccine administered in Simcoe Muskoka
  • 248,400+ people living in Simcoe Muskoka have received their first dose of vaccine, about 40% of the population.
The health unit reports almost 40 per cent have had first vaccine and close to 4 per cent have had their second dose.

IN OTHER COVID NEWS …

  • Alberta has a record 240 people in ICU, 222 on ventilators and 189 related to COVID.
  • Manitoba, with 430 cases today, has overtaken Alberta as the province with the highest 7-day infection rate per capita at 33 per 100,000, just slightly higher than neighbours two provinces west.
  • Pub grub in the UK is OK to consume without a mask as of Monday. And Brits can wash it down with “post-pandemic” pint. Cheers! Or cheers?
  • COVID killed Donald Trump’s re-election bid, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi could suffer the same fate as cases climb in India where his polling popularity has suffered a rare setback over his handling of the virus crisis. With an average of 4,000 deaths and 400,000 cases daily the country can’t take much more.
  • Joe Biden is promising to share an overly abundant 20 million doses of the Pfizer, Moderna and J&J vaccine to countries in need. That’s on top of 60 million of the AstraZeneca vaccine it has already committed.
Ontarians aged 18+ can book a vaccine shot starting Tuesday. That’s big step down bypassing 20- and 30-somethings after last week the province just said it was opening up to those 40+. Also now Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaws grocers will be offering asymptomatic COVID tests. 

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