An additional 9,124 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 527,257.

The 9,124 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered to residents living in the following zones: Far Northwest, 42; Far North Central, 1; Far Northeast, 9; Northwest, 519; North Central, 596; Northeast, 170; Saskatoon, 4,019; Central West, 64; Central East, 953; Regina, 1,280; Southwest, 292; South Central, 316; and Southeast, 516. There were 347 doses administered with zone of residence pending.

Seventy-one per cent of those over the age of 40 have received their first dose. Sixty-one per cent of those 30-plus have received their first dose. Fifty-one per cent of those 18-plus have received their first dose.

Vaccination Booking System Open to Ages 29-plus
Eligibility in the provincial age-based immunization program expanded today to include ages 29 years and older. It remains 18 years and older for the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District. This applies to all immunization clinics: booked appointments, drive-thru/walk-ins, pharmacies and mobile clinics.

Prioritized front-line workers are also eligible. A list of those occupations is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vax-eligibility. Eligible priority groups may visit a drive-thru or walk-in clinic, arrange an appointment with a participating pharmacy, or call 1-833-SaskVax (1-833-727-5829) to make an appointment through the SHA booking system. Prioritized front-line workers will be required to provide proof of employment at the time of immunization (a pay stub, letter from their employer, or a copy of a professional license).

There may be clinic options outside your community and residents are encouraged to consider those alternate locations for immunization. Additional stops should be avoided if possible. More clinics will be added as new vaccine shipments are received.
Residents aged 29-plus may book online at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19 or by calling 1-833-SaskVax (1-833-727-5829). They may also attend a scheduled drive-thru or book at a participating pharmacy. 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.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority has scheduled drive-thru and walk-in clinics throughout the province. For street addresses and hours of operation for these clinics, see www.saskatchewan.ca/drive-thru-vax.

The current list of pharmacies offering vaccinations is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-pharmacies. Find participating pharmacies near you using the map tool.

Starting on Wednesday, May 12, the vaccination clinic in Drayton, North Dakota is changing its hours. Eligible truck drivers and essential energy workers will be able to receive their vaccine between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
Individuals who experience a severe or unusual reaction after getting a COVID-19 vaccination can report it by calling 811. Anyone experiencing a severe reaction such as difficulty breathing should call 911. Any adverse event that may be related to a vaccination is reported in order to continuously monitor the safety of vaccines.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics
There are 147 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan May 10, bringing the provincial total to 43,288 cases.

No new deaths are reported today.

The new cases are located in the following zones: Far Northwest, 2; Northwest, 11; North Central, 9; Northeast, 6; Saskatoon, 43; Central East, 8; Regina, 35; Southwest, 10; South Central, 11; and Southeast, 9. Three new cases are pending residence information. Two cases with pending residence information have been assigned to the following zones: Northwest, 1; and Regina, 1.

Recoveries total 40,645 and 2,141 cases are considered active.

There are 156 people in hospital. One hundred nineteen people are receiving inpatient care: Northwest, 8; North Central, 3; Northeast, 2; Saskatoon, 56; Central East, 3; Regina, 41; Southwest, 1; South Central, 1; and Southeast, 4. Thirty-seven people are in intensive care: North Central, 3; Saskatoon, 13; Central East, 2; Regina, 17; Southwest, 1; and South Central, 1.

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 case number is 204 (16.7 new cases per 100,000). A chart comparing today’s average to data collected over the past few months is available at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

There were 2,507 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan May 9.

To date, 802,636 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan. As of May 8, 2021, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 674,680 tests performed per million population. The national rate was 858,901.

As of May 9, 8,392 variants of concern have been identified by screening in Saskatchewan, reported in the following zones: Far North West, 187; Far North East, 6; North West, 318; North Central, 237; North East, 50; Saskatoon, 1,029; Central West, 90; Central East, 373; Regina, 4,223; South West, 274; South Central, 612; and South East, 863. There are 130 screened VOCs with residence pending.

There are 92 new lineage results reported today. Of the 3,436 VOCs with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, 3,378 are B.1.1.1.7 (UK), 49 are P.1 (Brazilian) and nine are B.1.351 (SA).

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.

Be Safe and Limit Your Travel
Saskatchewan is a land of living skies and long highways. In a province as big as ours, travel is often required to meet the everyday needs of residents but we also start taking advantage of the warm weather to make get-away plans. At this time, please continue to minimize your travel. If residents are taking trips outside of their community, there are best practices to help reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission:

• Continue to follow the guidance of the current Public Health Orders.
• Manage as many retail or business needs in your home community as possible prior to any other destination.
• If you are travelling to or from a location with increased COVID-19 transmission, consider whether travel can be delayed.
• Where possible, travel in the same vehicle with members of your immediate household only.
• Travel directly from your home community to your destination with no unnecessary stops.
• Once you reach your destination, make as few stops as possible and minimize contact with residents of that community.
• Document date(s) of travel and the location of stops in case you need to refer to it later.
• While medical appointments are considered essential travel, access medical services in your home community only if possible.

Don’t Let COVID-19 Hitch a Ride Home with You
While Saskatchewan continues to monitor COVID-19 trends throughout the province, public health reminds all residents to ensure any travel both within the province and inter-provincially is for essential purposes only.

If your inter-provincial travel is necessary, please be aware of the risk of transmission in those jurisdictions, the public health orders that are in effect there, and plan to be tested immediately upon return home.

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.