71 active COVID cases; numbers beyond ‘green’ prevent zone

MARCH 31: A record 32 COVID-19 cases were recorded in Hastings Prince Edward March 31 bringing active cases to 71, the highest number since the pandemic began last year.

The seven day case rate per 100,000 people is a 29.7 – which could see the area moving to the orange – restrict zone of the province’s response framework.

Of the new cases, 15 were recorded in Belleville, 11 in Quinte West and two each in Prince Edward County, Centre Hastings and North Hastings. One was related to a workplace outbreak in Trenton (three cases); seven are linked to close contact, six to local spread and 18 transmission causes are pending.

The 71 active cases show 32 in Belleville, 19 in Quinte West, seven in Centre Hastings, six in Deseronto, five in Prince Edward County and two in North Hastings. There are 20 variants of concern recorded. There is one person hospitalized. There have been 28,473 vaccines administered and 1,946 people fully vaccinated.

MARCH 30: Three new cases recorded – two in Quinte West and one in Belleville – for a current caseload of 39 active. There have been 15 variants of concern. An outbreak at an unidentified business location in Quinte West is linked to two cases.

The seven-day case rate per 100,000 population is now at 22; the seven day per cent positivity is 1.4 and the seven day average contacts per case are 3.9 – all numbers which are beyond the region’s current green ‘prevent’ zone.

There are now 16 cases in Belleville, eight in Quinte West, six in each of Deseronto and Centre Hastings and three in Prince Edward County.

There have been 26,795 vaccinations

MARCH 29: Eight new COVID-19 cases posted for Hastings Prince Edward region – five in Belleville and three in Quinte West.

There are now 37 active cases – 15 in Belleville, six in each of Quinte West, Deseronto and Centre Hastings, three in Prince Edward County and one in North Hastings. There are no hospitalizations recorded.

There have been 25,213 vaccines administered with 1,915 people fully vaccinated.

MARCH 28: Another nine new COVID-19 cases were posted by Hastings Prince Edward Public Health – three in Centre Hastings and Belleville, two in Quinte West and one in Prince Edward County. With recoveries, there are now 30 active cases.

The cases include 11 in Belleville, six in Deseronto, five in Centre Hastings, four in Prince Edward County and one in North Hastings. The Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte also stated a case has been confirmed in a staff member of the Red Cedars Shelter in Shannonville.

There are no hospitalizations reported. Total cases since last year now tally 471. There have been 10 variants of concern.

There have been 24,932 vaccines administered with 1,915 people fully vaccinated.

MARCH 27: There are nine new COVID-19 cases reported – four in Belleville and Deseronto and one in Central Hastings. Nobody is hospitalized.

There are now 24 active cases, and the variant cases are at 10. There are nine cases in Belleville, six in Deseronto, three in Prince Edward County and Centre Hastings; two in Quinte West and one in North Hastings.

There have been 24,386 vaccines administered.

MARCH 26: Five new COVID-19 cases were reported – three in Belleville and one each in Quinte West and Deseronto. Active cases are at 15.

There are now five cases in Belleville, three in Prince Edward County, two each in Deseronto, Quinte West and Centre Hastings and one in North Hastings.

There are 23,842 vaccines administered to date.

MARCH 25: Four new COVID-19 cases were reported – including two in Prince Edward County and one each in Belleville and Deseronto.

There are now 11 active cases – three in the County and Belleville, two in Centre Hastings and one each in North Hastings, Quinte West and Deseronto.

The Hastings Prince Edward Public Health dashboard  reports there have been 23,093 vaccines administered.

MARCH 23: There were no new cases reported today and with recoveries, there are six active cases – two in Belleville, and one each in North and Central Hastings, Quinte West and Prince Edward County.

There have been 20,818 vaccines administered.

MARCH 22: There is one new COVID-19 case in Belleville. That means seven active cases – three in Belleville and one each in North and Centre Hastings, Quinte West and Prince Edward County.

There have been 20,022 vaccines administered.

(UPDATE: FULL) Hastings Prince Edward Health reports there are still some appointments available for March 23 at Picton’s Community Centre for COVID-19 vaccines for those age 75+.
Go to https://covid-19.ontario.ca/book-vaccine/ and when selecting the clinic location choose the SECOND Picton option. You will need your photo Health Card to book an appointment.
If you are unable to book online, contact the Provincial Vaccine Booking Line at 1-888-999-6488. The line is available 8 a.m.-8 p.m., Monday-Sunday. Individuals who do not have a photo ID health card will be required to book by phone.

MARCH 21: There were no new COVID-19 cases reported and with recoveries, there are now six active cases – two in Belleville, and one each in North and Centre Hastings, Quinte West and Prince Edward County.

There have been 19,958 vaccines administered.

MARCH 20: One new COVID-19 case was recorded in Belleville. There are now eight active cases – three in Quinte West, two in Belleville, and one each in North and Centre Hastings and Prince Edward County.

There have been eight variants of concern. There have been 19,812 vaccines administered.

MARCH 19 – One new COVID-19 case was recorded for Centre Hastings. There are now seven active cases (eight variants of concern) – three in Quinte West, and one each in Prince Edward County, Belleville, Centre Hastings and North Hastings.

There have been 18,921 vaccines administered.

MARCH 17 – One new COVID-19 case has been recorded in Belleville, but cases remain at eight due to a recovery. The eight cases (with six variants of concern) include two each in Prince Edward County, Quinte West and Belleville and one each in North Hastings and Tyendinaga.

There have been 13,821 vaccines administered.

MARCH 16: No new COVID-19 cases posted for the third straight day and with recoveries, the region is down to eight active cases (six variants of concern) – two in each of Quinte West, Belleville and Prince Edward County, and one each in North Hastings and Tyendinaga.

There have been 13,207 vaccines administered.

MARCH 15: No new COVID-19 cases were reported for the second day. Vaccination numbers are going up – 12,508 today – and cases are down to 12.

There are four cases in Belleville, three each in Prince Edward County and Quinte West, and one each in Tyendinaga and North Hastings.

Beginning today at 8 a.m., individuals aged 80 and older can book an appointment for the COVID-19 vaccination at ontario.ca/bookvaccine. Online booking is encouraged. People unable to book online themselves are asked to have a friend or family member book on your behalf. You will require your photo ID health card number.

As booking is being managed directly by the province, those who are unable to book online are advised to contact the Provincial Vaccine Booking Line at 1-888-999-6488​. The Booking Line is available 8 a.m.- 8 p.m., Monday-Sunday. Individuals who do not have a photo ID health card will be required to book by phone.

MARCH 14 – There were no new COVID-19 cases recorded. There were 12,154 vaccines administered.

There are 13 active cases (five variants) – four in Belleville, three each in Prince Edward County and Quinte West, and one each in Deseronto, Tyendinaga and North Hastings.

MARCH 13 – There were three new COVID-19 cases – two in Prince Edward County and one in North Hastings. There are now 14 active cases (five variants of concern). There are five cases in Belleville, three each in Quinte West and Prince Edward County and one each in Deseronto, Tyendinaga and North Hastings.

There are 11,944 vaccines administered.

MARCH 12: Three new cases of COVID-19 were reported today – two in Quinte West and one in Belleville. There are currently 13 active cases (five variants) as two more cases have resolved since yesterday. 11,500 vaccines have been administered.

Of the 13, there a six cases in Belleville, three in Quinte West, two in Deseronto and one each in Prince Edward County and Tyendinaga.

On March 11 – one year since COVID-19 was declared a world-wide pandemic, there were 12 active cases – five of which are variants of concern. Two new cases were reported in Quinte West and Tyendinaga. The 12 active include six in Belleville, two each in Prince Edward County and Deseronto and one each in Tyendinaga and Quinte West. HPEPH reported 10,679 vaccines have been administered.

There have been 433 total cases over the past year of the pandemic, 415 recoveries and six deaths.

MARCH 10: One new case of COVID-19 was reported in Deseronto. With recoveries, there are now 14 active cases (five variants) – nine in Belleville, three in Deseronto and two in Prince Edward County. There have been 9,795 vaccines administered.

On Monday, March 15, Ontario’s booking system will launch and begin to accept bookings for individuals aged 80 and older.

The recent provincial decision to accept National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommendations to extend the interval between vaccine doses to up to 16 weeks will allow HPEPH to begin reaching out to Phase 2 priority groups beginning in April.

The following groups are encouraged to register to receive notification from HPEPH when they become eligible:
Individuals who are 60 to 79 years of age
Indigenous people
Individuals with certain health conditions, regardless of age.

HPEH is vaccinating eligible groups and asks those people who are not eligible not to telephone, but to click the following link to register to receive notification when their age base becomes eligible.

For more information about the COVID-19 vaccine, including groups that are currently eligible in our region, visit hpePublicHealth.ca/covid-19-vaccines/

MARCH 9: Two new COVID-19 cases have been recorded for Belleville. With recoveries, there are now 14 cases with four VOC (variant of concern) – 10 in Belleville and two each in Prince Edward County and Deseronto.

There have been 8,522 vaccines administered.

HPEH is vaccinating eligible groups and asks those people who are not eligible not to telephone, but to click the following link to register to receive notification when their age base becomes eligible.

Currently eligible groups include staff and essential caregivers of long-term care homes, health care workers, medical and hospital front line staff, first responders, home care, physicians, midwives, retirement homes, NP clinics, commuity health centres, dentists, pharmacies, congregate settings and laboratory services.

MARCH 8 – Hastings Prince Edward Public Health is reporting two new COVID-19 cases in Belleville. With recoveries there are 15 active cases – 11 in Belleville and two each in Prince Edward County and Deseronto.

HPEPH records 7,976 vaccines administered.

MARCH 7 – One new COVID-19 case was reported in Deseronto. With recoveries, there are now 15 active cases. There have been 7,231 vaccines administered.

There are now 11 cases in Belleville, two cases in Deseronto and two in Prince Edward County.

MARCH 4 – One new COVID-19 case was posted in Deseronto, for a total of 21 active cases in Hastings Prince Edward.

There are 16 cases in Belleville, three in Deseronto and one in each of Prince Edward County and Tyendinaga.

The number of vaccines administered is now 4,123.

MARCH 3 – Two separate cases of COVID-19 in the region have screened positive for a variant of the virus.

Hastings Prince Edward Public Health reports the variants were sent to Public Health Ontario’s provincial lab for genomic sequencing to identify the specific variant, but the lab was unable to complete the sequencing for the first case and sequencing is pending for the second, Dr. Ethan Toumishey, Medical Resident, told the board this morning.

HPEPH said the individuals who screened positive for a variant isolated throughout their contagious period and the risk to the community is low.
“However, the identification of COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) in our region serves as a somber reminder that we are not immune to the spread of the virus and variants.”

While it is normal for viruses to change and evolve over time, Dr. Toumishey explained COVID-19 VOCs may be more contagious, be able to spread more quickly, infect more people, and could potentially cause more severe illness. As COVID-19 VOCs are still new, evidence continues to emerge about their potential risks.

“As certain variants have been identified as being significantly more contagious than the original strain, ongoing adherence to public health measures is essential to keep one another safe until vaccines are available to all,” said Dr. Toumishey. “Each of us must continue to do our part to prevent the spread of all strains of COVID-19 and avoid more restrictive public health precautions in our region.”

Cases of COVID-19 variants in HPEPH are being continuously monitored and beginning March 4, 2021 they will be reported on the HPEPH COVID-19 Dashboard.

Four new cases of COVID-19 were reported on the dashboard today – three in Belleville and one in Prince Edward County.

With recoveries, there are now 22 active cases – 16 in Belleville, three in Deseronto and one each in Tyendinaga, Quinte West and PEC.

The HPEPH dashboard has updated vaccines administered to 3,727.

MARCH 2: Three new cases of COVID-19 posted today in Belleville, and recoveries, puts Hastings Prince Edward with 21 active cases.

There are now 14 cases in Belleville, four in Deseronto, two in Tyendinaga and one in Quinte West.

The outbreaks in Belleville (five cases) posted Feb. 25 and Central Hastings posted Feb. 24 (two cases) are not yet declared over.

MARCH 1: Four new COVID-19 cases were recorded on the Hastings Prince Edward Public Health dashboard – three in Belleville and one in Deseronto.

With recoveries, active cases move to 20 with 12 in Belleville, four in Deseronto, and two each in Quinte West and Tyendinaga. There have been 418 cases in Hastings Prince Edward since the pandemic began last March, along with 392 recoveries, and six deaths related to the virus.

Monday, COVID-19 vaccine clinics began at Loyalist College for Phase 1 Immediate Priority groups. HPEPH records 2,186 vaccines administered as of Sunday.

The appointment are filled primarily with long term care and high-risk retirement home staff and essential caregivers.

Hastings Prince Edward Public Health notes the college will serve as a primary vaccination clinic site for the duration of the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out and will have a capacity to provide 1,000 vaccinations per day, dependent on vaccine supply.

HPEPH is working with partners to secure a second site in Belleville, as well as sites in Picton, Trenton, Marmora, Madoc and Bancroft.

To learn more about the COVID-19 vaccine roll out, visit https://hpepublichealth.ca/covid-19-vaccines/