Government reports another six deaths
Six more Saskatchewan residents with COVID-19 were reported to have died on Tuesday, bringing the pandemic's death toll to 225 since March.
Seventy deaths have been reported so far in January.
The provincial government also reported 309 new identified cases and 412 recoveries, bringing the total of active known cases down to 4,156.
The government says the number of reported recoveries will increase in the coming days because of a “significant backlog ” of tracing people with COVID-19 who may have already recovered, but whose status has not been updated in official data.
A government news release said the backlog includes approximately 588 people whose first symptoms developed three weeks ago or longer, as well as 567 people whose symptoms developed 15 to 20 days ago and roughly 882 people whose symptoms developed 11 to 14 days ago.
Fourteen days after exposure is the typical “range” when a person with COVID -19 is still infectious, though recovery can take longer.
It is the second time Saskatchewan has reported such a backlog in cases. The release said procedures will be “amended” to make ensure it doesn't happen again.
Saskatchewan currently has the highest reported per-capita rate of known active cases in Canada and the highest seven-day rolling average of new cases among Canadian jurisdictions, according to Health Canada.
Chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab said last week that he may have to recommend new measures to slow the spread if they do not fall.
Five of the latest six deceased residents were 80 years of age or older and lived in the Regina (two), Saskatoon (one) and southeast (two) parts of the province. The final resident was in their 60s and lived in the central west.
Of the province's 225 deaths so far, 12 were in the 20-39 age group, 14 in the 40-59 group, 72 in the 6079 group and 128 in the 80-plus range.
As of Tuesday there are 207 residents with COVID -19 in hospital, 31 receiving intensive care.
The province administered 1,957 doses of vaccine on Monday, bringing the total number of shots that have reached Saskatchewan residents' arms to 24,575. The province expects to receive 2,925 more doses of a vaccine developed by Pfizer and Biontech this week that will be divided between the Battleford, Regina and Qu'appelle regions of the province.
Federal officials recently announced that Pfizer deliveries to Canada will likely be decreased because of updates the company is making to its manufacturing facility in Belgium. Maj. Gen. Dany Fortin, the military officer helping direct the vaccine effort, said on Tuesday that Canada will not receive any doses from the company in the week of Jan. 25.