COVID-19 Update: Seven Deaths, 559 New Cases, 182 in Hospital, 500 Recoveries

Released on December 27, 2020

There are 559 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on December 27, 2020, bringing the provincial total to date to 14,814 cases.  Today’s data update includes information for December 25, 26 and 27.

Seven Saskatchewan residents who tested positive for COVID-19 have died.  Two new deaths in the age group 80+ were reported in the North West zone.  Two new deaths in the age group 70-79 were reported in the North Central zone.  One new death in the age group 30-39 was reported in the North West. One new death in the age group 80+ was reported in Regina, and one new death in the age group 80+ was reported in the South East zone.

On December 25, there were 229 new cases and no new deaths reported. Hospitalizations included 125 acute care and 29 in ICU.  On December 26, there were 132 new cases and no new deaths reported. Hospitalizations included 144 acute care and 30 in ICU.  On December 27, 198 new cases and seven deaths were reported. Hospitalizations include 156 in acute care and 26 in ICU.

The new cases are located in the Far North West (25), Far North East (44), North West (41), North Central (104), North East (22), Saskatoon (126), Central West (2), Central East (21), Regina (70), South West (2), South Central (4) and South East (11) zones.  Eighty-seven (87) new cases have pending residence information.

Of the 14,814 cases, 3,398 cases are considered active.  A total of 11,275 individuals have recovered.

Of the 14,814 cases in the province:

• 610 cases are travelers;
• 7,079 are community contacts (including mass gatherings);
• 3,363 have no known exposures; and
• 3,762 are under investigation by local public health. 

Overall in Saskatchewan to date:

• 653 cases are healthcare workers; however, the source of the infections may not be related to healthcare in all instances. 
• 3,144 cases involve people 19 years of age and under, while the remainder are adults. 
• 5,292 cases are in the 20-39 age range; 3,801 are in the 40-59 age range; 1,930 are in the 60-79 age range; and 642 are in the 80-plus range. Confirmation of age is pending for five cases. 
• 50 per cent of the cases are female and 50 per cent are male. 
• 141 deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported to date.

Of 14,814 confirmed cases: 

• 4,212 cases are from the Saskatoon area
• 3,537 cases are from the north area (1,364 north west, 1,682 north central, 491 north east)
• 2,884 cases are from the Regina area
• 1,614 cases are from the far north (892 far north west, 106 far north central, 616 far north east)
• 1,532 cases are from the south (556 south west, 532 south central, 444 south east)
• 908 cases are from the central area (335 central west, 573 central east)
• 127 cases have pending residence information

To date, 420,620 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan.  As of December 22, 2020 when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 252,000 people tested per million population.  The national rate was 354,978 people tested per million population.

From December 25-27, 5,079 COVID-19 tests were reported to be processed in Saskatchewan (December 25: 2,422; December 26: 1,442; December 27: 1,215).

The seven-day average of daily new cases is 180 (14.9 new cases per 100,000 population) and is now available on the Government of Saskatchewan website.  This chart compares today’s average to data collected over the past several months.  Please visit https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

Reconciliation of Hospitalized Residents

The provincial dashboard reports that 182 people are in hospital.  One hundred fifty-six (156) people are receiving inpatient care, and 26 people are in intensive care.

Saskatchewan has updated definitions of the COVID-19 infectious period to align with national definitions.  This resulted in the number of individuals hospitalized due to COVID-19 being under-reported.  Validation of case numbers is underway for patients in hospital. 

These are not new hospitalizations.  They are residents who are not infectious and are considered recovered, but who are still receiving care for complications of COVID-19 illness.  The Saskatchewan Health Authority is working on a process to ensure these numbers are included in the daily case reports.  The provincial dashboard will have a notation added while this process is finalized.  The Ministry of Health is currently reviewing how these cases are reported in other Canadian jurisdictions.

Drive-thru Testing Sites’ Holiday Hours

As we move through the holiday season, please be aware that the COVID-19 drive-thru testing sites will have modified hours.  Please check the Government of Saskatchewan website for dates and times for drive-thru testing at
https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/testing-information.

Case Information Posting through December

The daily provincial case information, including news release and dashboard, will be posted December 29 through December 31.  Updates will not be available on December 28 and January 1. Case information from those dates will be included in the next scheduled information update. 

Public Health Measures 

For more information on the current public health measures or to see the Public Health Order, visit www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-measures.  

General COVID-19 Information

General public inquiries may be directed to COVID19@health.gov.sk.ca.

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