The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada

The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times Eastern):

7:30 p.m.

The federal government says Canada has now logged more than 800,000 cases of COVID-19.

It says there have been 801,057 total infections and 20,702 deaths since the virus made its way to Canada last year.

It took three weeks for Canada to add another 100,000 cases to its overall total, with the government reporting just over 700,000 diagnoses on Jan. 16.

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6 p.m.

Alberta’s chief medical officer of health is reporting 12 new COVID-19 deaths, as well as 348 new cases.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw says the new cases were identified from 10,033 tests, which makes for a test-positivity rate of 3.6 per cent.

Hinshaw says there are 457 people with COVID-19 in Alberta’s hospitals, and that 84 of those are in intensive care.

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4 p.m.

The Nunavut government says there are three new cases today in a community that has been the centre of the territory’s largest COVID-19 outbreak.

Arviat, a community of about 2,800, is the only community in Nunavut with active cases.

Officials are reporting 15 active cases there as of Saturday.

Nunavut has had 299 COVID-19 cases in four communities, but 283 have recovered.

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3 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting four new deaths and 264 new cases of COVID-19 today.

Two of those who died were people in their 50s in the Far North West region, while the other two were in their 80s — one in the Regina zone and the other in the province’s southeast.

Saskatchewan’s daily COVID-19 update says the province has 2,413 active infections.

It says the seven-day average of new cases in Saskatchewan is 226, or 18.4 new cases per 100,000 people.

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2:40 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting the deaths of four people with COVID-19, including a man in his 40s and a woman in her 50s.

The province says in its daily COVID-19 update that 82 new cases of the virus have been identified.

The update says there are 259 people in hospital, 101 of whom have active COVID-19 and 158 who are no longer infectious but who still need active care.

It also notes a COVID-19 outbreak has been declared in the dialysis unit at St. Anthony’s General Hospital in The Pas, in northwestern Manitoba.

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2:20 p.m.

The Alberta government says it will allow limited school and team sports for children and teens to resume on Monday.

The province says in a news release that starting Feb. 8, children and youth will be allowed to take part in “lessons, practices and conditioning activities for indoor and outdoor team-based minor sports and athletics.”

Late last month the province said children’s sport and performance activities could resume Feb. 8 at off-site facilities, but that they had to relate to school activities, such as physical education classes.

At that time, Premier Jason Kenney said that some COVID-19 public health measures were being eased due to lower hospitalization numbers.

Today’s announcement states participants must be 18 years old or younger, excluding coaches or trainers, and notes all games are still prohibited.

There’s also a 10-person maximum, including coaches and trainers, and participants must maintain physical distancing from each other at all times.

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1:25 p.m.

Health authorities in Newfoundland and Labrador are confirming three new cases of COVID-19 in the province today.

They say two of the infections are linked to travel, including a Quebecer who came to the province for work.

There are 17 active cases but no one in hospital, with 391 people deemed recovered.

Officials are advising against large gatherings ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl LV, asking people to keep to their close contacts and being mindful of the risks of holding gatherings of a maximum of 20 people, permitted under public health rules.

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1 p.m.

New Brunswick is reporting two deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 12 new infections in the province.

Health authorities say the deaths are both in the Edmundston area and include a resident in their 80s at the Manoir Belle Vue, a nursing home, and a person in their 60s.

Of the 12 new cases, ten are in the Edmundston area, which remains under lockdown.

Eight people are in hospital, with two in intensive care.

The province has now reported 20 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic and 1,337 confirmed cases with 1,095 recoveries.

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11:30 a.m.

There are no new cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia today, and provincial health officials say the number of active infections in the province has dropped by one to seven.

Premier Stephen McNeil says in a statement he’s proud of Nova Scotians efforts to keep cases low and is telling them to remain vigilant as new measures easing restrictions don’t go into effect until Monday.

Those new measures, in effect until March 7, include an increase in gathering limits to 150 people outdoors and to 50 per cent of an indoor venue’s capacity to a maximum of 100 people.

Retail and fitness businesses will be able to welcome up to 75 per cent of their legal client capacity.

A total of 17,295 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in Nova Scotia, including 4,681 second doses.

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11:15 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 1,204 new cases of COVID-19 and 27 further deaths attributed to the novel coronavirus, including nine in the previous 24 hours.

The province’s Health Department is reporting 58 fewer patients in hospital for a total of 982, along with 159 patients requiring intensive care, a drop of nine.

The province administered 4,373 COVID-19 vaccine doses Friday for a total of 253,904.

Quebec has 268,977 confirmed infections and 9,999 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, with 246,695 people considered recovered.

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11 a.m.

Ontario is reporting 1,388 new cses of COVID-19 today along with 45 new associated deaths.

Virus-relatd hospitalizations in the province stand at 1,021, with 325 patients in intensive care and 228 on a ventilator.

Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott says there are 455 new cases in Toronto, 288 in Peel and 131 in York Region.

Those regions are expected to be the last to reopen their economies under a provincial plan that’s set to be announced early next week.

The Canadian Press has learned that Premier Doug Ford is set to reveal details on Monday, but a senior government source says four regions with low case counts may be able to start easing restrictions on businesses as early as Wednesday.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 6, 2021.

The Canadian Press