The most recent official statistics on COVID-19 infections suggest that the recent seasonal decline in new cases may already be running out of steam.
As you can see from this week’s composite chart, Canada-wide municipal wastewater COVID viral counts continued their decline, but much more modestly than in recent weeks. Ontario PCR test positivity rates are roughly the same as where they were last year at this time. Ontario COVID hospitalization and ICU bed occupancy rates are still dropping but currently mirror last year’s numbers.
The independent statisticians at COVID-19 Resources Canada now appear to be providing updates on a monthly basis, which means that we will have to wait until next week for an update to their early-April estimate of one in every 69 Ontarians being currently infected and therefore infectious. As I indicated last week, I expect their next estimate to show a significant reduction in that risk.
Public Health Canada’s weekly reports on the relative “market shares” of currently-circulating COVID variants on a bi-weekly basis. Again, that means no change in the corresponding bar chart.