While the number of COVID hospitalizations is up slightly, ICU admissions remain under 300 — where they've been for nearly two weeks.
The latest COVID updates published by the province reported 20 new deaths, and 246 patients in intensive care units because of COVID-related illness. Of those, 141 patients are on ventilators.
There were 1,208 new cases confirmed through lab testing in today's report. Case counts are underestimated.
Public Health Ontario has confirmed 1,115,492 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, and reported 1,086,664 recoveries and 12,591 deaths.
The March 8 updates provided by the province's public health agency and the ministry of health also reported the following data:
Cases
- 1,653 recoveries since yesterday's report
- Among the new cases confirmed today are 157 unvaccinated people, 32 partially vaccinated people, and 901 fully vaccinated people. 118 cases were reported with vaccination status unknown.
- The seven-day average incidence rate for cases is nine cases per 100,000 unvaccinated people, eight cases per 100,000 partially vaccinated people, and 11.4 cases per 100,000 fully vaccinated people.
Hospitalizations
- 779 people are in hospital testing positive for COVID-19. About 44 per cent of those patients were admitted because of COVID-related illness, and 56 per cent were admitted for a different reason but also test positive for COVID-19.
- Of those hospitalized not in the ICU, 165 are unvaccinated, 27 are partially vaccinated, and 411 are fully vaccinated.
- There are approximately 246 patients in Ontario ICUs with COVID-related illnesses, and 200 patients in the ICU currently testing positive for COVID-19.
- There are 141 patients on ventilators because of COVID-related critical illness.
- Among the ICU patients are 50 unvaccinated people, eight partially vaccinated people, and 68 fully vaccinated people.
Vaccination
- About 86 per cent of the population over four years old in Ontario is fully vaccinated (about 12 million people)
- More than seven million people in Ontario have had three doses of a COVID vaccine.
- 10 per cent of the eligible population (aged 5 and up) is unvaccinated
Testing
- Provincial labs processed 11,128 tests for the latest report, resulting in an 11.2 per cent positivity rate.
- There are 8,026 tests still being processed
