WDGPH reporting 42 new COVID-19 cases over weekend

WELLINGTON COUNTY – Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (WDGPH) is reporting 42 new COVID-19 cases over the Thanksgiving long weekend (Oct. 8 to 11).

The region’s active case count now sits at 62 and its case rate per 100,000 population has decreased from 35.3 on Sept. 25 to 17.3 on Oct. 10.

The rate of COVID-19 tests returning positive for the virus has declined from 2.0% on Sept. 30 to 1.4% as of Oct. 8.

The region’s effective reproduction number, used to measure how many additional cases spread or result from a single case, is at 1.04 as of Oct. 10 after sitting at 0.74 on Oct. 2. A value of one or above means cases will increase; below one and spread will eventually cease.

There are six people in the region hospitalized due to COVID-19, two of which are in an ICU as of Oct. 7. Their vaccination status is not known.

According to provincial data, as of the morning of Oct. 12, there are 162 unvaccinated persons hospitalized with COVID-19 across the province, of which 68 are in an ICU.

Fully vaccinated individuals account for 53 hospitalizations across the province, with 14 in an ICU.

Delta variant

As of Oct. 12, the Delta variant represents 39.4% of the 1,080 COVID-19 cases confirmed in the health region since the variant was first reported publicly here on June 15.

On June 14, Public Health Ontario (PHO) began allowing all positive COVID-19 samples to be sent for whole genome sequencing, the only way to truly determine how many cases of Delta there are within local health units.

According to PHO data, Delta represented the vast majority (99.3%) of all 5,731 positive COVID-19 tests that had their DNA sequenced between Aug. 22 and Sept. 18.

Over the same time period, labs sequenced 114 positive cases originating from WDGPH, with all returning positive for Delta.

Delta represents an estimated 85.7% of cases in Wellington County between Oct. 4 and Oct. 10. Region-wide, that estimate is 70.4%.

Local trends

Wellington County had 12 newly confirmed cases reported over the holiday weekend, with 21 total active cases in the county as of Oct. 12.

Active cases in Guelph and Dufferin County are sitting at 19 and 22, respectively.

The death toll attributed to COVID-19 across the region has risen to 127.

Municipality-specific active COVID-19 case counts as of Oct. 12, 2021. (WDGPH image)

Vaccinations

Since Oct. 5, another 1,782 residents have become fully vaccinated with two doses in the WDGPH region, bringing the total as of Oct. 12 to 227,040 or 83.6% of the population aged 12 or older. That’s an increase of less than one per cent over last week.

There are 10,265 residents who have received one dose as of Oct. 12.

Vaccination rates across Wellington County municipalities as of Oct. 12, 2021. (WDGPH image)

According to Ontario’s COVID-19 Advisory Science Table data, as of Oct. 12, there were 123.5 new cases every day per million people in those unvaccinated, compared with 17.1 cases per day in those fully vaccinated.

The data concludes there’s a 86.1% risk reduction of contracting a case with two vaccine doses.

In Wellington County 76.6% of eligible residents are two-dose vaccinated as of Oct. 12.

According to WDGPH data tracking vaccination uptake across county municipalities, Wellington North now leads the way for the largest share of a municipality’s residents having two doses.

Upwards of 9,704 residents could be fully vaccinated, with WDGPH reporting between 85 and 89 per cent of 10,904 Wellington North residents with two doses.

Centre Wellington, with its significantly larger population, still has the largest representation of people vaccinated with upwards of 22,896 of 27,226 residents with two doses.

Mapleton and Erin continue lingering behind, with less than 70% of their residents fully vaccinated.

Across the region, there are an estimated 10,913 high school students who are vaccinated with two doses; 651 with only a single dose; and 2,286 students who have not yet received a single dose.