Ontario health officials reported 421 new COVID-19 infections on Friday, along with 39 new deaths, pushing the provincial death toll above 1,100.
Friday’s disclosure is more positive than Thursday’s, where a whopping 86 deaths were confirmed in a single day, along with more 500 new infections.
The total number of laboratory-confirmed cases including deaths and recoveries now stands at 16,608.
Close to two-thirds of all cases in the province, 10,825, are now considered resolved, an increase of 620 since yesterday.
For the past several days, the rate of recovery from the virus has exceeded the rate of new infection, a very positive sign.
“We’re flattening the curve, we ‘re heading in the right direction,” Premier Doug Ford said Friday afternoon. “We have reason to be optimistic – as the trends continue downwards, as we continue seeing a reduction in community spread, we’re getting closer and closer to opening things back up.”
All but 56 of the 1,121 people confirmed to have died from the novel coronavirus in the province were above the age of 60, with 774 of them above the age of 80 when they died.
Ontario's 34 local public health units were reporting a total of 1,185 deaths due to COVID-19 as of 1:45 p.m. Friday.
"We're continuing to bend the curve in our community cases and we're seeing that we have at least plateaued if not starting to bend it even more," Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams said
"It looks like we're starting to make some steady headway in our longterm care facilities."
There are now 198 outbreaks in the province’s long-term care system, representing close to one third of all such facilities in the province.
More than 2,400 healthcare workers have contracted the virus since the outbreak began.
The Greater Toronto Area accounts for nearly 60 per cent of all cases.
More than 1,000 in hospital
While the apex of the peak may have passed, Ontario hospitals are taking in an increasing number of patients struggling with the disease.
Hospitals had 1,017 COVID-19 patients under some form of treatment on Friday, up from 999 on Thursday.
Of those, 225 were in intensive care, down eight from Thursday.
The number of patients intubated fell by six to 175.
Province completes record number of tests
Ontario’s network of labs turned around 16,532 specimens in the previous 24 hours, a new daily record that exceeds what provincial officials promised they would hit by next week.
Based on the number of tests completed, only 2.5 per cent of those tested came back positive for infection, half of the positive rate seen on Thursday and for most of the last week.
Another 11,975 test specimens remained under investigation on Friday.
Ontario’s expanded testing capacity will enable them to conduct widespread surveillance in long-term care, retirement and other congregate settings, including select people displaying no symptoms.
