Ontario reports most COVID-19 deaths, cases in a single day

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TORONTO — Ontario's COVID-19 fatalities and case numbers have climbed to a single-day high, with 55 deaths and 564 cases reported on Friday morning.

There are currently 9,525 cases of COVID-19 in the province, including 478 deaths and 4,556 recoveries. The data shows that 362 patients have recovered in the last 24 hours.

Friday’s jump in reported cases marks a 6.3 per cent increase over the day prior.

The number of those hospitalized for COVID-19 has continued to rise throughout the week, though the number of patients being treated in an intensive care unit (ICU) has declined slightly.

As it stands, the number of patients in hospital is 829, up 22 from Thursday, while 245 patients are being treated in the ICU, down 18 patients since Monday. Of those 245 patients in the ICU, 200 are breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.

The number of those being treated in the ICU is significantly lower than what the province had predicted earlier this month. By April 16, Ontario health officials had projected there would be roughly 1,200 patients in intensive care.

Despite that, the province announced on Thursday the addition of more than 2,500 acute and critical care beds to their hospitals, in preparation for a potential surge of COVID-19 cases.

Premier Doug Ford once again credited the efforts of Ontario residents for the relatively low numbers of ICU patients when compared to projections. As a result, Ford said that new modelling data will be released on Monday to better reflect the province's COVID-19 outlook.

In terms of testing, the province said it completed 8,899 tests on Thursday. The province had previously said it hoped to complete 8,000 daily tests by April 15, a benchmark they appear to have reached.

However, yesterday Ontario health officials noted that the total number of tests conducted (136,992) does not represent the total number of people tested, meaning that numerous samples may have been taken from a single patient.

Additionally, the number of cases under investigation has grown to 5,993, up 1,670 since Thursday, which the Ministry of Health has attributed to expanded testing criteria.

According to Friday’s epidemiologic summary, there are currently 106 outbreaks in Ontario’s 626 long-term care homes. At least 216 residents have died as a result of these outbreaks with hundreds more staff members testing positive for the virus.

In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 at these residences, Ford unveiled Ontario’s COVID-19 Action Plan for Long-Term Care Homes on Wednesday, which includes enhanced testing and screening at facilities with confirmed outbreaks.

The premier also issued an emergency order that limits long-term care home staff to working at only one facility, a move that has drawn criticism as it only goes into effect on April 22.

COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on Ontario’s seniors overall. As of Friday morning, 266 people 80 years of age or older have died.

Friday’s report also shows that 130 deceased patients were between the ages of 60 and 79, another 26 were between the ages of 40 and 59.

There is only one deceased patient between the ages of 20 and 39. No deaths have been reported in patients 19 years of age or younger, though there are 204 confirmed cases in that age group.

Quick facts on all COVID-19 patients in Ontario: