Airdrie's active COVID-19 cases have remained close to stagnant over the last week, as 62 active cases were reported in the city as of Feb. 20.
There have been a total of 1,844 cases locally since the pandemic began, according to airdrie.ca. Of the total cases 1,765 Airdronians have recovered from the virus, while 17 deaths have been reported.
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Provincially, 328 new cases of COVID-19 were identified on Feb. 20. The case numbers mean there were 4,758 active cases in Alberta as of that date, and a total of 131,063 cases since the pandemic began.
According to the Province, 124,478 Albertans have recovered from COVID-19, 321 patients are in hospital and 53 Albertans are in intensive care units. In total, 1,827 deaths have been reported in Alberta due to the virus.
Cases are currently confirmed in five Airdrie schools. According to the provincial COVID-19 status map, Bert Church High School is still listed under "outbreak" status, with five-to-nine cases of the virus. St. Veronica School, École francophone d'Airdrie and Herons Crossing School are listed under "alert" status, meaning they have reported two to four cases each. Good Shepherd School was added to the list under "alert status" over the long weekend.
Rocky View County (RVC) was reporting 22 active cases as of Feb. 20 – A drop of 13 cases from the previous day. COVID-19 outbreaks in RVC are reported at five facilities in Balzac, including the Harmony Beef meat processing plant, the Wal-Mart logistics centre, the Amazon Fulfilment Centre, the Sobeys Distribution Centre and Dexterra Group.
In RVC, Khalsa School Calgary Educational Foundation is on the COVID-19 school status map under "alert" status. Springbank Middle School has also been added to the list under "alert" status.
On the east side of RVC, Chestermere was reporting 39 active cases as of Feb. 20 – a drop of three from the previous day – while out west, Cochrane was up to 12 cases, which was two more than the previous day. In Chestermere, Rainbow Creek Elementary School is listed under "alert" status on the government's COVID-19 school status map, while Chestermere High School and Chestermere Lake Middle School are listed under "outbreak" status. Prairie Waters Elementary School is no longer listed as a source of outbreak.
As of Feb. 20, 169,441 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Alberta. To date, 66,357 Albertans have been fully immunized with two doses of a vaccine. Ninety-eight adverse events following immunization have been reported to Alberta Health and Alberta Health Services.
On Feb. 19, the Alberta government announced an expansion of the Province's COVID-19 vaccine rollout. According to Premier Jason Kenney, Phase 2 of the vaccine distribution program is targeted to begin in April, depending on the supply of vaccine.
Phase 2 vaccinations will be offered in a staged approach, according to a government press release. Once Phase 2 is completed in the fall, the Province will have vaccinated 1.79 million Albertans, including anyone aged 50 to 74 years, anyone with high-risk underlying health conditions, First Nations and Métis people aged 35 and older, residents and staff in congregate living settings, and eligible caregivers.
“Alberta’s vaccine rollout has always prioritized people who are most at risk from COVID-19 and Phase 2 is no different," Kenney said in the release. "We have listened to advice from public health experts and our Vaccine Task Force to identify those at-risk Albertans."
Eligibility in Phase 2 will move from Group A toward Group D, as per the following:
- Group A includes:
- Albertans aged 65 to 74, no matter where they live.
- First Nations and Métis people aged 50 to 64, on and off reserve or Metis Settlements.
- Staff of licensed supportive living facilities not included in Phase 1.
- Group B includes:
- Albertans aged 18 to 64 with high-risk underlying health conditions. Additional information on specific conditions will be provided prior to Phase 2 rollout.
- Group C includes:
- Residents and staff of eligible congregate living settings. This includes correctional facilities, homeless shelters, and group homes, including disability, mental health and other types of licensed supportive living.
- Health-care workers providing direct and acute patient care who have a high potential for spread to high-risk individuals.
- Caregivers of Albertans who are most at risk of severe outcomes.
- Group D includes:
- Albertans aged 50 to 64, no matter where they live.
- First Nations and Métis people aged 35 to 49 on and off reserves or Metis Settlements.
"Our province is ready to get vaccines into the arms of Albertans as quickly as possible. However, this relies on Alberta getting the right supply of vaccines from Ottawa, on time," Kenney said. "We need the federal government to end the delays so we can get the job done.”
