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For the first time since Feb. 20, the Saskatoon area has more active COVID-19 cases than the Regina region.
In its daily update Tuesday, the Ministry of Health reported the Saskatoon zone had 507 active cases and the Regina area had 482.
Since Feb. 20, the Regina region regularly recorded more cases than all of the other zones in the province. Its active caseload reached 1,121 on April 5, when the Saskatoon area had 290.
Since then, Regina and area had been trending downwards while the Saskatoon zone went the other direction.
On Tuesday, the Saskatoon zone reported 53 of the province’s 186 new cases and the Regina region recorded 46.
Other new cases were registered in the north-central (29), northwest (13), south-central (12), central-east (seven), southwest (seven), southeast (seven), far northeast (five), northeast (three), far northwest (one) and central-west (one) zones.
The hometowns of two cases are pending.
Seven cases that were tested out of province were added to Saskatchewan’s total, which now stands at 43,481.
There were four new deaths due to COVID reported Tuesday, increasing the province’s total to date to 506.
Three of the deaths — a person in their 30s, an individual in their 70s and a person in the 80-and-over group — were reported in the northwest zone. An individual in their 60s from the south-central zone also passed away.
The seven-day average of new COVID cases is 204, or 16.6 per 100,000 population.
Another 122 cases of variants of concern were identified by screening in Saskatchewan, increasing the total so far to 8,514. The Regina (4,253) and Saskatoon (1,064) zones reported four-digit totals.
To date, 3,496 variants with lineages have been identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan. They comprise 3,436 cases of the United Kingdom variant, 51 of the Brazilian strain and nine of the South African mutation.
The 266 recoveries reported Tuesday increase the province’s total to date to 40,911. There are 2,064 cases that are considered active — the lowest that number has been since it was 2,053 on April 2.
There are 162 people in Saskatchewan hospitals due to COVID, with 38 of those in intensive care. Those patients are in the Regina (19), Saskatoon (13), north-central (two), central-east (two), southwest (one) and south-central (one) zones.
The 3,043 COVID tests done in Saskatchewan on Monday hiked the province’s total to date to 805,679.
Vaccination update
There were 3,050 doses administered in the province in the latest reporting period, increasing the province’s total so far to 530,307.
The latest shots were given in the Saskatoon (1,341), north-central (334), southeast (307), Regina (269), northwest (164), southwest (162), central-east (160), far northwest (82), south-central (66), northeast (40), central-west (21), far northeast (19) and far north-central (one).
There were 84 shots administered to people whose hometowns are being determined.
The age eligibility for vaccinations is to drop to 26 and older on Wednesday at 8 a.m. That applies to all booked appointments, drive-through or walk-in clinics, pharmacies and mobile clinics.
Also Wednesday, the vaccination clinic for truckers and essential energy workers at the Saskatchewan-North Dakota border is to change its hours of operation. The clinic in Drayton, N.D., is to be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
