Ontario has reported its highest ever number of daily COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic in 2020.
On December 23, the province reported 5,790 new cases of COVID-19 and seven new deaths for a record-breaking high.
The last time the province saw numbers even close to this was on April 16, 2021, when 4,812 cases were reported, according to the Ontario government website.
The province logged 4,383 cases on December 22 with a seven-day average of 3,520. Today's numbers mark a sharp increase of 1,407 cases in comparison to yesterday's numbers.
As of December 23, 169 people are in the ICU due to COVID-19, and according to a tweet from Minister of Health Christine Elliott, "137 are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 32 are fully vaccinated."
169 people are in ICU due to #COVID19. 137 are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status and 32 are fully vaccinated.
— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) December 23, 2021
According to Elliott, 440 people are hospitalized with COVID-19 in Ontario, with the majority being individuals who are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status, and 136 who are fully vaccinated.
As the Omicron variant surges, Ontario has taken measures to halt the spread through stricter restrictions in restaurants, capacity limits, and social gathering limits.
The Ontario government has also expanded eligibility for booster doses and is giving away free rapid antigen tests from mid-December to mid-January at LCBOs and other locations.
Currently, 81.2% of people 5 years old and older are fully vaccinated, according to the Ontario government, and 86.7% of the age group have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Health Canada has a robust website with all the latest information on COVID-19 vaccines and can answer any questions you may have.
