COVID-19 Update for March 12: 98,571 Vaccines Administered, 176 New Cases, 131 Recoveries, Three New Deaths

Released on March 12, 2021

Vaccines Reported

An additional 2,692 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 98,571.

The 2,692 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered in the following regions: Far North Central (7), North West (365), North Central (815), Saskatoon (490), Central East (237), Regina (461) and South East (317).

As of March 12, 56 per cent of long-term care homes across Saskatchewan have now received their first and second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and are now fully vaccinated.   Forty-five per cent of personal care homes have received both their first and second doses. 

For a listing of first and second doses in Saskatchewan administered by geographic zone, visit https://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-update.

COVID-19 Vaccine Bookings for 80+ today and 76+ Saturday

Starting at 8 a.m. this morning, the Saskatchewan Health Authority Patient Booking System expanded COVID-19 vaccine appointment options to include individuals 80 years of age and older.  Vaccine eligibility options will be expanded again tomorrow, March 13 at 8 a.m., to include individuals 76 years of age and older.  People meeting this criteria can book their appointments online 24/7 using their health card at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine; or call 1-833-SASKVAX (1-833-727-5829) between the hours of 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. 

Additional information on eligibility and how to book your appointment is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine/vaccine-booking.

AstraZeneca vaccine clinic opens for 64 year olds Monday in Regina

Beginning on Monday March 15, 2021, Regina will open a pilot Drive-Thru immunization clinic on the grounds of the Regina Exhibition Association Ltd (REAL) for residents who are age 64 only and all Phase 1 health care workers.  Appointments cannot be pre-booked for the Drive-Thru clinics.

The Drive-Thru site will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on a first-come, first-served basis. Only those who are 64 years of age as of Monday, March 15, 2021 will be eligible that day (with a birthdate between March 16, 1956 and March 15, 1957).  To allow convenient access for health care workers and to test the new process for the public, a clinic will be operated on Sunday, March 14.  Sunday's drive thru immunization clinic is not open to the public.

The site will begin to open up other ages in reverse order from oldest to youngest, in the days afterwards. Please do not attend this clinic unless you have been advised your age is eligible.  The Saskatchewan Health Authority will issue a Public Service Announcement as each subsequent age groups become eligible.  Those announcements will also appear in the daily case news release.  At this time, the AstraZeneca vaccine is approved for use in Canada in those aged 18-64 only.

When you are eligible to receive a vaccine at the REAL location, please enter the grounds through the Lewvan and 11th Avenue entrance and follow the GREEN signs for the immunization Drive-Thru clinic.  If you are going to the appointment-only Immunization Clinic follow the BLUE signs.  For the COVID-19 drive-thru testing, follow the YELLOW signs.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics

There are 176 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on March 12, bringing the provincial total to 30,369 cases.

Three Saskatchewan residents who tested positive for COVID-19 have died.  Two deaths were reported in the 70-79 age group in the Regina and South Central zones. One death was reported in the 50-59 age group in the Saskatoon zone.

The new cases are located in the Far North West (1), Far North Central (1), Far North East (10), North West (16), North Central (11), North East (8), Saskatoon (31), Central East (18), Regina (67), South West (3), South Central (2) and South East (2) zones.  Six (cases) are pending location information. Two (2) cases with pending residence information were assigned to the Regina zone.

There are a total of 28,528 recoveries and 1,437 cases are considered active.

One hundred twenty-nine (129) people are in hospital.  One hundred and two (102) people are receiving inpatient care: Far North West (2), Far North East (1), North West (10), North Central (6), Saskatoon (43), Central East (5), Regina (32), South Central (1) and South East (2).  Twenty-seven (27) people are in intensive care: North West (1), North Central (1), Saskatoon (13), Central East (2) and Regina (10).

There were 2,990 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan on March 11, 2021.

To date, 605,982 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan.  As of March 10, 2021, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan's per capita rate was 508,388 tests performed per million population.  The national rate was 672,080 tests performed per million population.

The seven-day average of daily new cases is 134 (11.0 new cases per 100,000), the lowest seven-day average since November 13.  A chart comparing today's average to data collected over the past several months is available on the Government of Saskatchewan website.  Please visit https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

Further statistics on the total number of cases among healthcare workers, breakdowns of total cases by source of infection, age, sex and region, total tests to date, the per capita testing rate and current numbers of variants of concern can be found on the Government of Saskatchewan website.  Please visit https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/cases-and-risk-of-covid-19-in-saskatchewan.

Interrupt COVID-19 Transmission in Regina

With an increase of community transmission of variants of concern in Regina, public health officials are asking all those who live and work in Regina to re-commit to best prevention practices to protect against COVID-19.

• Wear your mask in all public places
• Maintain physical distancing
• If you are able to work from home, work from home at this time
• Wash your hands frequently
• Avoid all unnecessary travel

Many of Regina's outbreaks are a result of people of going to work and public places while symptomatic.  If you have any symptoms, stay home and arrange for a COVID-19 test 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.

Enforcing Public Health Measures

Enforcement of public health orders is permitted under The Public Health Act, 1994.  Public health inspectors will be supported in their efforts to ticket violators to ensure that businesses and events are brought into compliance as quickly as possible, in addition to the enforcement efforts that have been undertaken by police agencies throughout the province.

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

Weekly Reporting of Testing Numbers and Cases for Youth

The trends of COVID-19 cases in school-aged children are being monitored.  The weekly report of cases and testing numbers for children aged 0-19, including data by age and positivity rates, has been posted at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19-Safe-Schools-Plan.

General COVID-19 Information

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

Know your risk.  Keep yourself and others safe.  www.saskatchewan.ca/government/health-care-administration-and-provider-resources/treatment-procedures-and-guidelines/emerging-public-health-issues/2019-novel-coronavirus/about-covid-19/know-your-risk.

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