An additional 9,801 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 382,135.

The 9,801 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered to residents living in the following regions: Far Northwest (419), Far North Central (7), Far Northeast (222), Northwest (512), North Central (349), Northeast (950), Saskatoon (2,276), Central West (715), Central East (1,005), Regina (1,197), Southwest (502), South Central (310) and Southeast (1,013). There were 324 doses administered with zone of residence pending.

Fifty-four per cent of Saskatchewan residents age 40-plus have received their first dose.

All vaccine administration details for the province, including first and second doses, can be found on the dashboard at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness. As the source database for vaccine information, Panorama is subject to continuous data updates which may result in revised counts, day over day.

Vaccination Booking System Open to Ages 44-plus
Eligibility in the provincial age-based immunization program is currently age 44 and older, except for the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District, where it remains age 40 and older. This applies to all immunization clinics: booked appointments, drive-thru/walk-in and mobile.

Please remember demand for appointments outweighs current available supply. Additional clinics will be added as new vaccine shipments are received.

Appointments can be made online at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19. People who do not have a cell phone or email account, need assistance in booking, or are providing documentation for priority eligibility status must book by calling 1-833-SaskVax (1-833-727-5829). Additional information on how to book your appointment is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-booking.

Please do not call until you are eligible to book your vaccination appointment.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics
There are 245 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan April 23, bringing the provincial total to 39,392 cases. Ten (10) cases tested out of province have been added to the Far Northeast (4) and Northwest (6) counts.

There is one (1) new death reported in the 60-69 age group in the Regina zone.

The new cases are located in the Far Northwest (2), Far Northeast (9), Northwest (23), North Central (15), Northeast (5), Saskatoon (40), Central West (3), Central East (19), Regina (75), Southwest (10), South Central (12) and Southeast (27) zones. Five (5) new cases have pending residence information. Fourteen (14) cases with pending residence information have been assigned to the North Central (1) and Regina (13) zones.

There are a total of 36,458 recoveries and 2,463 cases are considered active.

One hundred eighty-six (186) people are in hospital. One hundred thirty-four (134) people are receiving inpatient care: Far Northeast (1), Northwest (9), North Central (7), Saskatoon (44), Central East (8), Regina (51), Southwest (3), South Central (4) and Southeast (7). Fifty-two (52) people are in intensive care: North Central (2), Saskatoon (11), Central East (2), Regina (35) and Southwest (2).

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 case number was 251 (20.5 new cases per 100,000). A chart comparing today’s average to data collected over the past several months is available on the Government of Saskatchewan website at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

There were 4,157 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan April 22.

To date, 745,435 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan. As of April 21, 2021, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 624,750 tests performed per million population. The national rate was 800,189 tests performed per million population.

As of April 22, 5,691 variants of concern have been identified by screening in Saskatchewan, reported in the Far Northwest (64), Far Northeast (2), Northwest (122), North Central (76), Northeast (9), Saskatoon (576), Central West (75), Central East (236), Regina (3,286), Southwest (143), South Central (444) and Southeast (596) zones. There are 62 screened VOCs with residence pending.

There are zero (0) new lineage results reported today. Of the 2,060 VOCs with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, 2,046 are B.1.1.1.7 (UK), nine (9) are B.1.351 (SA) and five (5) are P.1. (Brazilian). The Regina zone accounts for 1,475 (72 per cent) of the VOC cases with confirmed lineage reported in Saskatchewan.

Please note these VOCs may have been initially identified via means other than screening (i.e. selection for whole genome sequencing without screening) and that whole genome sequencing results to identify lineage are included in the screening results.

Confirmed variant of concern cases may appear in both columns on the website, depending on testing for that case. Adding the cases identified by screening and those that have received whole genome sequencing may result in double-counting individual cases.

Further statistics on the total number of cases among health care workers, breakdowns of total cases by source of infection, age, sex and region, total tests to date, per capita testing rate and current numbers of confirmed variants of concern can be found at http://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-cases.

All Public Health Measures Extended to May 10
Due to increased COVID-19 transmission risk throughout the province, the Chief Medical Health Officer has extended all current provincial public health orders until May 10, 2021. The orders will be reviewed at that time. Full details on current public health measures can be found at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-measures.

All residents are urged to adhere to best personal protective measures:

• Wear your mask in all public places including all workplaces
• Wash non-medical masks daily
• Maintain physical distancing
• Wash your hands frequently
• Reduce activities outside of your home. Order take-out or curbside pick-up. If you are able to work from home, work from home at this time.
• Avoid all unnecessary travel throughout the province at this time

If you have any symptoms, stay home and arrange for a COVID-19 test.

If anyone in your home has symptoms, the entire household should remain home until the test results are known. Testing information is available at 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 quickly to ensure 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.

On April 21, Saskatchewan Health Authority public health inspectors issued a ticket for $2,800 to an individual in Regina for failure to comply with a public health order. Note that under The Health Information Protection Act, the Ministry of Health cannot disclose the names of individuals who have received fines.

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.

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.