Watch this page throughout the day for updates on COVID-19 in Calgary
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With news on COVID-19 happening rapidly, we’ve created this page to bring you our latest stories and information on the outbreak in and around Calgary.
What’s happening now
- The province’s 71.3 per cent first-dose vaccination rate of people over the age of 12 is being bolstered by larger population centres, while trust, access and the level of concern around COVID-19 are contributing to lower uptake of vaccinations in rural areas of Alberta.
- Brig. Gen. Krista Brodie says Pfizer-BioNTech is to send more than 2.4 million doses this week and Moderna about 1.4 million.
- Alberta’s COVID-19 vaccine lottery didn’t lead to an increase in first-dose uptake, but it may have prevented an even greater decline in jabs, immunization data show.
- Due to a technical issue getting the exact numbers, Alberta reported “about 100” cases on Friday. The province did not release case numbers over the weekend.
- Alberta administered its four millionth dose of vaccine on June 24.
- Some physically distanced seats in Calgary Stampede’s grandstand are selling at a discount when compared to their neighbouring sections.
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Nearly 30 per cent of respondents broke COVID-19 restrictions: Canada-wide survey
Almost 30 per cent of respondents in a newly released Canada-wide survey admitted to breaking COVID-19 rules — and felt justified doing so.
The survey by the Canadian Hub for Applied and Social Research at the University of Saskatchewan was done between June 1 and June 14. It asked 1,000 people about how closely they stuck to public health orders and where they were getting their information about the pandemic.
Some 29 per cent said they broke at least one COVID-19 restriction. The most common transgressions were around gathering limits and wearing masks.
But the survey also found that respondents were generally diligent about following isolation requirements and gave honest responses to COVID-19 screening questions.
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Of the people who broke rules, 62 per cent said they felt it was justified. Their reasons included wanting to see friends and family (27 per cent) and a belief that they were violating restrictions in a safe way (17 per cent). Some said they ignored rules they didn’t think made any sense (21 per cent) and seven per cent said they didn’t believe the pandemic exists or is a problem.
Total COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to top 50 million doses by week’s end
Canada should have enough COVID-19 vaccine by the end of this week to fully inoculate three-quarters of all Canadians over the age of 12.
Brig. Gen. Krista Brodie, the military commander managing national vaccine delivery logistics for the Public Health Agency of Canada, says Pfizer-BioNTech is to send more than 2.4 million doses this week and Moderna about 1.4 million.
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Those shipments will push Canada’s total vaccine deliveries above 50 million doses to date, enough to administer two shots to 75 per cent of eligible residents.
Another 18 million doses are expected in July, enough to fully vaccinate all 33.2 million Canadians over the age of 12.
Sunday
Access, less concern contributing to lower vaccine rates in rural areas of Alberta
Trust, access and the level of concern around COVID-19 are contributing to lower uptake of vaccinations in rural areas of Alberta, say public health experts.
The province’s 71.3 per cent first-dose vaccination rate of people over the age of 12 is being bolstered by larger population centres, show data provided by Alberta Health. Calgary currently has one of the highest rates with approximately 76.5 per cent of eligible people being at least partially immunized as of end of day Thursday, while Edmonton is hovering at 73.5 per cent.
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Lower northwest Calgary has the highest rate of any geographical area at 82.4 per cent of eligible residents having at least their first shot.
By comparison, 37.1 per cent of people over the age of 12 in the County of Forty Mile and 44.3 per cent in Cardston-Kainai have at least their initial vaccine. The lowest uptake in the province is High Level, which includes a large portion of northwestern Alberta, with 20 per cent.
While there are some exceptions, with Rocky Mountain counties along the western border having rates in the 60 and 70 per cents, the map generally shows the farther a region is from a large population centre, the less of an uptake there has been in vaccinations.
Dr. Jia Hu, a professor at the University of Calgary’s Cummings School of Public Health and member of the 19-to-Zero coalition of experts working to build confidence in vaccines, said there are multiple reasons for the varying rates. He said the three main reasons for why people will choose to get immunized include the level of access to vaccine appointments, the level of concern people have for COVID-19 and who people trust in the community.
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Sunday
Fake vaccine certificates are flourishing on Moscow’s black market
It took just a few hours for fraudsters to act after Moscow’s mayor announced this month that coronavirus vaccinations were compulsory for most of the city’s service-sector employees.
Accounts advertising the availability of fake COVID-19 vaccination certificates suddenly appeared as social media followers of Russians who identified as working at restaurants or bars.
A new black market was born with a deep potential clientele: the many Russians still hesitant to be vaccinated even amid a surge in coronavirus cases.
Saturday
First year of COVID-19 hospital stays in Alberta cost an estimated $167 million: CIHI
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Alberta’s costs came to an average cost of nearly $28,000 per hospital stay when you consider factors such as the length of stay, staff, medical supplies, testing and equipment that comes with treating a COVID-19 patient. That’s almost four times the average cost of a hospital stay for a patient without COVID-19.
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Saturday
Will we need a COVID vaccine booster? Fall unlikely, but spring a possibility
With the provinces still hurrying to get second COVID vaccine doses into bodies, it seems odd to be talking boosters, third doses. Can’t we just celebrate this moment, of “sustained national decline” in COVID and glorious reopenings, and catch our breath?
Most Canadians have been, or will be, getting second dosed from May through July, and published data suggest “very little drop off” in antibody levels by several months out, said University of Toronto immunologist Tania Watts. Unlike the United Kingdom, which, according to the BBC, is planning for an autumn “booster jab” rollout, Watts very much doubts the Canadian general public would need a third dose in the fall.
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Beyond that, the situation gets murky. “If we need it, could it be as early as next spring? Possibly,” she said. Two or three years? Again, possibly. These are new vaccines and a new virus and it’s hard to predict. But assuming immunity will, at some point, wane, “I think there has to be an option to be ready to roll out the vaccine again,” Watts said.
The World Health Organization estimates boosters will be needed yearly for the most vulnerable, and every two years for the general population, according to an internal document seen by Reuters. An independent group advising the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, isn’t yet swayed booster shots are necessary, though Moderna and Pfizer are already trialling third doses of their formulas.
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While more data are needed, talk of boosters is also raising the issue of vaccine hoarding. Canada has committed more than $1 billion to buy up to 282 million doses. Do we store those extra shots for third doses, or help the world’s poorest countries get their first?
Friday
Evidence mixed on impact of Alberta lottery on vaccine uptake
Alberta’s COVID-19 vaccine lottery didn’t lead to an increase in first-dose uptake, but it may have prevented an even greater decline in jabs, immunization data show.
In the week following the June 12 lottery announcement, an average of 10,209 Albertans received their first shot against COVID-19 — a 19 per cent decrease from the previous seven-day period.
But the drop was less significant than that seen in preceding weeks, including a 44 per cent decline in first-dose uptake for the week ending June 12, suggesting the lottery helped mitigate the decreasing demand.
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Friday
Stampede offers physically distanced grandstand seats at discount prices
Some physically distanced seats in Calgary Stampede’s grandstand are selling at a discount when compared to their neighbouring sections.
The Stampede’s website shows ticket sales for rodeo events will include sections with seats available in pairs, with each pair flanked by two empty seats on either side. In Section 105, distanced seats were selling for $52 for regular entrants and $29.50 for children under 12 for July 9. A section over, Section 106, had tickets available for all seats in the area with tickets costing $93.
In the 200 sections of the venue, both distanced and non-distanced seat tickets were being sold for $63.
Friday
Alberta reports about 100 cases as vaccine doses surpass four million
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The province was only able to give a rough estimate of COVID-19 cases, saying about about 100 new cases were discovered in the past 24 hours.
The province also said it passed the 4 million mark in delivering doses of vaccine on Thursday
Currently, 71.3 per cent of Albertans have received at least one dose and 34.3 per cent are fully immunized against COVID-19.
Friday
Just give us the vaccines, WHO pleads, as poor countries go wanting
Rich countries are opening up societies and vaccinating young people who are not at great risk from COVID-19, while the poorest countries cruelly lack doses, the World Health Organization said on Friday, condemning a global failure.
The situation in Africa, where new infections and deaths jumped by nearly 40% last week compared to the previous week, is “so dangerous” as the Delta variant spreads globally, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
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“Our world is failing, as the global community we are failing,” he told a news conference.
Friday
Hugs, barbecues and small dinners: Advice released on what fully vaccinated can do
The Public Health Agency of Canada says people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 can have dinner together inside someone’s house without having to keep their distance or wear a mask.
It released the information after facing days of questions about what those who are double-dosed can do as the country’s vaccine campaign ramps up.
It says someone who is meeting people who are double-dosed while gathering in a small group outside doesn’t need to physical distance or wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status.
COVID-19 Update: Pfizer to send more than 2.4M doses to Canada this week | Rural areas of Alberta seeing lower vaccine rates - Calgary Herald
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