Manitoba Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Brent Roussin reported 118 new cases of COVID-19 this afternoon bringing the five day test positivity rate to 10.6 percent.  He also reported four additional deaths with three in Winnipeg and one in the Northern health region linked to the outbreak at the Rod McGillivary Memorial Care Home.  Of the new cases 46 are in the Northern health region and 45 in Winnipeg with lower numbers in other regions. Roussin says they are still seeing outbreaks in northern and First Nations communities and so there’s a lot of work on the ground with the rapid response teams, rapid testing, a lot of work right now on alternative isolation accommodations because it’s very important to get those cases of contact isolated to break the chain of transmission. He adds they see the numbers today showing a slight downturn but they’re still concerned about the outbreaks in the remote settings.

Of the 27,629 reported cases 3,108 are active, 23,748 individuals have recovered and 289 are in hospital with 35 in intensive care. It was noted that the delay in Pfizer vaccine distribution will have no affect on the commitment of Moderna doses made to First Nations communities.