Coronavirus Update: Hospitalizations rising countrywide as Omicron threatens to overrun the health system

Good evening, here are the COVID-19 updates you need to know tonight.

Top headlines:

1. As the Omicron variant drives a rapid rise in hospitalizations in much of Canada, provinces are finding ways to maintain staffing levels in health care systems already pushed to the brink
2. World No. 1 tennis player Novak Djokovic denied entry to Australia over COVID-19 vaccine exemption
3. Ottawa to send 140 million COVID-19 rapid tests to provinces, territories as Omicron cases rise across the country

In the past seven days, 290,088 cases were reported, up 64 per cent from the previous seven days. There were 271 deaths announced, up 94 per cent over the same period. At least 5,042 people are being treated in hospitals.

Canada’s inoculation rate is 16th among countries with a population of one million or more people.

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Sources: Canada data is compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data is from Johns Hopkins University.

Coronavirus explainers: Coronavirus in maps and charts • Tracking vaccine doses • Lockdown rules and reopening

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Coronavirus in Canada

• A hospital in Fort Erie, Ontario, is shutting down its urgent health centre on Thursday because of shortages of staff and increasing numbers of COVID-19 patients. A COVID-19 outbreak in Bearskin Lake First Nation has infected close to half its residents, including vulnerable elders and children, while a region-wide lockdown restricting non-essential travel is now in effect. And the City of Toronto says it has terminated 461 employees for failing to comply with its mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy. Meanwhile, the Ontario Hockey League says it is committed to finishing its 2021-22 season as new COVID-19 measures begin in the province, including a complete restriction on fans at indoor sports venues. The province is reporting 2,081 people in the hospital with COVID-19 and 288 patients in intensive care.
• Several Quebec health authorities are being forced to cancel employee vacations as the province struggles with staff shortages and rising COVID-19 hospitalizations. Officials are reporting 14,486 new COVID-19 cases today and say about 28 per cent of tests came back positive – the same test-positivity rate as the prior day.
• When students in British Columbia go back to their classrooms after an extended winter break, schools are likely to be hit with as many as 30 per cent of teachers off sick at any given time, B.C.’s Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said. Health authorities are reporting the number of hospitalizations from COVID-19 has risen to 317 as the province deals with the Omicron variant. There are 3,798 new COVID-19 cases and a total of 29,967 active cases.
• Alberta students will go back to classes Monday as planned with more medical masks and COVID-19 rapid test kits. Meanwhile, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, announced 4,752 new cases of COVID-19.
• Manitoba is changing its COVID-19 testing process amid rising case numbers and a backlog of tests. Health officials say most people going to provincial testing sites will now be given rapid antigen tests to take home instead of a lab test on site. Health officials are reporting 1,790 new COVID-19 cases and two deaths.
• Saskatchewan is reporting 541 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the province’s seven-day average of daily cases to 549, or just over 45 cases per 100,000 – the highest it has been since the pandemic began.
• Health officials in New Brunswick are reporting 779 new cases of COVID-19 today and three more coronavirus-related deaths.
• Labrador’s Indigenous communities are reporting more cases of COVID-19 and are calling for more resources.
• Cases of COVID-19 continue to rise across Nunavut, with confirmed or presumptive cases in 14 of the territory’s 25 communities. There are 231 active cases of COVID-19 in Nunavut, mostly in Iqaluit, Arviat and Rankin Inlet.
• Yukon is advising residents that if they have symptoms of COVID-19, they should assume they have the virus without getting tested. Dr. Catherine Elliott, the territory’s acting top doctor, said Wednesday just under 5,000 rapid tests are currently available and those are needed for people who are considered high risk or have chronic health conditions.

An additional 140 million rapid tests will be delivered to provinces and territories this month, says Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.

• During a news conference today with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Mr. Duclos said the tests will be allocated to the provinces and territories on a per-capita basis as requested by those levels of government. He also said that deliveries are already under way.
• Mr. Duclos said that before December, 2021, the federal government delivered 85 million tests to provinces and territories. Last month alone, he said that an additional 35 million tests were delivered.

Hospitalizations rising: The Omicron variant is driving a rapid rise in hospitalizations in much of Canada, pushing health care systems further to the brink. British Columbia and Quebec have developed protocols that would allow asymptomatic health care workers to remain on the job should the public-health situations continue to deteriorate.

On The Decibel: Globe science reporter Ivan Semeniuk is on The Decibel to talk about how scientists map variants’ genomes.

Coronavirus around the world

• Novak Djokovic, the No. 1 tennis star in the world, was denied entry into Australia today after initially being granted a medical exemption for the country’s COVID-19 vaccination requirements so that he could play in the Australian Open.
• In France, President Emmanuel Macron’s pledge to ‘piss off’ the unvaccinated sparks country-wide COVID-19 debate
• The World Health Organization says that it is monitoring a new variant, IHU, detected in a small number of patients in France, but that, for now, there is little reason to worry about its spread.
• U.K. health authorities are simplifying COVID-19 testing requirements amid the Omicron surge, a move designed to cut isolation times for many people and that may ease the staffing shortages that are hitting public services.
• The U.S. Supreme Court is preparing to decide whether to block President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandates for large businesses and healthcare workers in a test of presidential powers to address a public health crisis. Meanwhile, the CDC’s advisory panel voted in favour of Pfizer vaccine booster for ages 12 to 15.

Coronavirus and business

The rising number of COVID-19 cases in Canada has led to staffing shortages in many industries, including essential retail.

• For stores that were already facing record job vacancies, the surge has made it challenging to stay open and maintain regular operating hours, especially in some communities that may rely on a single grocery store as their only source of food.

Also today: Flight attendants are demanding better COVID-19 protections, including improved access to rapid tests and prioritized booster shots in the wake of a maskless party on a Sunwing Airlines flight from Montreal to Cancun. Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra has asked Transport Canada to investigate “unacceptable” behaviour on the flight.

And: Air Transat says passengers who were partying maskless on a recent Sunwing flight from Montreal to Mexico will not be allowed on its planes as they attempt to return to Canada.

Plus: Walmart halves paid leave for workers who test positive for COVID-19, extends hybrid work guidelines

Globe opinion

• Robyn Urback: When do we admit Canada’s health care system just isn’t working?
• The Editorial Board: We have the tools to beat Omicron. Use them
• Cathal Kelly: Novak Djokovic wins no matter the venue

More reporting

• Despite hurdles caused by COVID-19, Toronto choir remains intact and prepared for next live show
• IOC assures teams Winter Olympics in Beijing will go ahead
• Thousands held on Hong Kong cruise ship for COVID-19 testing
• Grammy Awards postponed due to Omicron COVID-19 variant risks
• Canadian Alphonso Davies is latest Bayern Munich player to test positive for COVID-19
• Oilers captain Connor McDavid enters NHL’s COVID-19 protocol ahead of game with Maple Leafs

Information centre

• Everything you need to know about Canada’s travel restrictions for vaccinated and unvaccinated people
• Where do I book a COVID-19 booster or a vaccine appointment for my kids? Latest rules by province
• What is and isn't 'paid sick leave' in Canada? A short primer
• Got a vaccine 'hangover'? Here's why

Sources: Canada data are compiled from government websites, Johns Hopkins University and COVID-19 Canada Open Data Working Group; international data are from Johns Hopkins.

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