Ontario reports more than 150 new cases of COVID-19 for second straight day

TORONTO — Health officials are reporting more than 150 new COVID-19 infections for the second day in a row, after reporting new case numbers in the low 100s for more than a week.

The 164 new cases reported Sunday morning are down slightly from the cases added day earlier, but represent an increase over the relatively low numbers reported daily since July 10.

Sunday morning’s report brings the total number of lab-confirmed cases in the province to 37,604 – a 0.4 per cent increase over Saturday’s total when 166 new cases were recorded.

Three more deaths were recorded in Ontario as a result of the novel coronavirus. The province’s COVID-19 death toll now stands at 2,751.

READ MORE: Tracking Ontario's 37,604 cases of COVID-19

Additionally, 113 more cases are now considered to be resolved by the ministry of health, though that number has been lagging behind the number of active cases reported in recent days.

Meanwhile, testing for COVID-19 in the province remains high with 26,890 tests completed in the last 24-hour period.

The province has conducted more than 1.8 million tests since the onset of the pandemic. However, at least 18,081 tests remain under investigation, according to the ministry of health.

Where are the new COVID-19 cases?

According to Sunday's epidemiologic summary, most of the new COVID-19 cases added today were reported in Peel Region, Toronto, Windsor-Essex and Ottawa.

Those regions were held back from entering Stage 3 of the province’s regional reopening plan on Friday, with the exception of Ottawa, due to the stubbornly high number of new cases reported in the area on a daily basis.

However, most of the province's public health units continue to report fewer than five new cases daily. In fact, several health units reported no new cases at all.

“Locally, 28 of Ontario’s 34 public health units are reporting five or fewer cases, with 15 of them reporting no new cases at all,” Health Minister Christine Elliott said in a tweet published on Sunday.

The number of patients in Ontario hospitals with COVID-19 continues to gradually trend downwards.

Right now, there are 101 people in hospital with 34 patients being treated in an intensive care unit. Of those 34 patients, 23 are breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.