Ontario reports spike in COVID-19 cases but admits dozens are result of reporting delay

Ontario reporting 455 new cases of COVID-19 The number includes 68 cases that were previously confirmed but not included in the province's database due to a reporting delay

TORONTO — Ontario has recorded spike in the number of new COVID-19 cases as the province surpasses 30,000 infections.

Health officials reported 455 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday but admitted that 68 of those cases were a result of a "laboratory-to-public health reporting delay."

The province also recorded an additional 35 COVID-19 related deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 2,407.

To date, there are 30,202 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ontario. The number of resolved cases has reached 23,947 and now accounts for 79.3 per cent of all patients.

Saturday's epidemiological summary shows that 1,674 people 80 years of age or older have died as a result of the novel coronavirus, the hardest hit age group since the start of the pandemic in mid-January. There have been 630 deaths in people between the ages of 60 and 79.

Ninety-three other deceased patients in the province were between the ages of 40 and 59 and 10 people were between the ages of 20 and 39.

There have been no deaths recorded in people 19 years of age or younger.

Public health units in the Greater Toronto Area account for 66.9 per cent of all cases.

Hospitalizations for COVID-19 are down since Friday's report. There are currently 673 people in hospital. Of those 673 in hospital, 117 patients are being treated in an intensive care unit, 97 of which are breathing with the assistance of a ventilator.

Testing in Ontario

In total, the province has conducted more than 832,158 tests for the novel coronavirus.

In the last 24-hour period to be recorded, officials conducted 23,105 tests. There are currently 12,384 tests under investigation.

Quick facts on all COVID-19 patients in Ontario: