Ontario's daily COVID-19 case count has once again hit a more than nine-month low with just over 200 new infections confirmed today.
Provincial health officials logged 210 new cases today, down from 287 on Sunday and 346 on Saturday.
It is the lowest single-day total reported in the province since Sept. 13.
The rolling seven-day average of new infections is now 278, down slightly from 334 last week.
With 13,071 tests processed over the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health is reporting a provincewide positivity rate of 1.8 per cent, down from 2.5 per cent one week ago.
Another three virus-related deaths were confirmed today.
Data released by public health units and individual hospitals indicates that there are at least 745 people infected with COVID-19 receiving treatment in Ontario hospitals, including 511 in Toronto.
The province says there are now 287 COVID-19 patients in the ICU, down from 323 last Monday.
Another 286 cases of the more infectious Delta variant were confirmed by provincial labs today and the variant is now believed to be the dominant strain in Ontario.
Of the new cases confirmed today, 37 are in Toronto, 26 are in the Region of Waterloo, 25 are in Grey-Bruce, 15 are in Peel Region, 12 are in Hamilton, and 12 are in Niagara Region.
Ontario's active COVID-19 caseload is now 2,506, down from 3,454 last week.
The province says about 77 per cent of adults in Ontario now have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 35 per cent are fully vaccinated.
It appears high vaccination rates in Ontario have helped the province keep case counts, hospitalizations, and deaths at bay, even as public health restrictions are eased. Ontario is set to enter Step 2 of the Ford government's reopening plan on Wednesday, a move which will allow salons and barbershops as well as outdoor amusement and water parks to reopen. Outdoor gatherings of up to 25 people and indoor gatherings of up to five people will also be permitted starting Wednesday.
Last week, federal officials released guidelines on what sort of activities fully vaccinated people can engage in two weeks after their second dose.
The Public Health Agency of Canada said those who are fully vaccinated can hug each other and have a small group of friends over for dinner without wearing a mask or staying apart.
The numbers used in this story are found in the Ontario Ministry of Health's COVID-19 Daily Epidemiologic Summary. The number of cases for any city or region may differ slightly from what is reported by the province, because local units report figures at different times.
