Ontario reports 1,670 new COVID-19 cases due to backlog from Toronto

The Government of Ontario confirmed 1,670 new COVID-19 cases on Friday morning, with an overestimate in numbers as Toronto Public Health continues to merge their data system with the province.

According to Health Minister Christine Elliott, “Toronto Public Health is reporting 125 additional cases today that were not fully migrated during the CCM transition, resulting in a slight overestimation of today’s case numbers.”

The province is also reporting 2,223 newly resolved cases and 45 more virus-related deaths.

Friday’s numbers are more than Thursday’s 1,563, Wednesday’s 1,172, and Tuesday’s 745, which was low due to a change in the data system that didn’t include Toronto’s numbers.

However, numbers are less than Monday’s 1,969, Sunday’s 1,848, Saturday’s 2,063, Friday’s 1,837, Thursday’s 2,093, and Wednesday’s 1,670.

Of the newly announced cases, 667 are from Toronto, 317 are in Peel, and 125 are in York Region.

Health Minister Christie Elliott said 62,700 tests have been completed and 362,749 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines have been administered.

Ontario is reporting 1,670 cases of #COVID19 and over 62,700 tests completed. Locally, there are 667 new cases in Toronto, 317 in Peel, 125 in York Region and 100 in Halton.

As of 8:00 p.m. yesterday, 362,749 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.

— Christine Elliott (@celliottability) February 5, 2021

There are now 69 confirmed cases of the UK COVID-19 variant in Ontario, and the first South African variant was detected on February 1.

Health officials have called the fast-spreading variant a “significant threat” and noted that it may impact Ontario’s lockdown measures.

There is no evidence to suggest that approved vaccines will be any less effective against the newfound variants.

Over the weekend, major Canadian airlines, including WestJet and Air Canada, cancelled service to Mexico and the Caribbean until the end of April.

On February 1, mandatory COVID-19 testing began at Toronto’s Pearson Airport. While international travellers await the results of their test they will need to quarantine at an approved hotel at their own expense.

A second State of Emergency was announced by Premier Doug Ford, who also issued a Stay at Home order, effective January 14. This means everyone must stay home and only go out for essential trips, such as going to the grocery store or pharmacy, accessing healthcare services, exercising, or essential work.

To date, Ontario has seen 275,330 COVID-19 cases and 6,438 virus-related deaths.