Everything you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Thursday, June 17

The latest COVID-19 numbers:

• Alberta reports 150 new COVID-19 cases as the province teeters on the edge of its vaccination threshold to trigger the final stage of its reopening plan.
• Under that plan, the province will go to Stage 3 and lift most public health restrictions two weeks after 70 per cent of Albertans 12 and older have their first dose. 
• The province is now reporting 69.9 per cent of Albertans over the age of 12 had received at least one dose of vaccine, according to updated numbers posted to Alberta Health's website Thursday.
• The province is reporting its lowest active case count of COVID-19 since October — there are about 2,471 active infections in the province, down from more than 20,000 a month earlier, when Alberta imposed tougher public health restrictions. 
• There were 242 people in hospital in Alberta — a decrease of 13 from the previous day. Of those in hospital, 58 were in intensive care units.
• Alberta's positivity rate is 2.38 per cent.
• Provincial labs completed 6,044 tests over the past 24 hours. 
• There have now been 2,280 COVID deaths, while 226,257 Albertans are considered to have recovered from COVID-19.
• The latest R-value was 0.76, meaning the virus is spreading to less than one person for each confirmed case. That number has increased over the previous two weeks.  
• Three units at the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary are dealing with COVID-19 outbreaks of the rapidly spreading delta variant, or B.1.617.2.  
• Two deaths at the Foothills Medical Centre have been linked to the delta variant, Alberta Health Services says.
• AHS said that of those two deaths, one person had been fully immunized, while the other had not received either a first or second dose of the vaccine.
• Eleven people in the Foothills hospital outbreaks who are confirmed to have contracted the delta variant were fully vaccinated before they contracted the illness, officials said.
• A total of 22 patients and seven health-care workers have tested positive for COVID-19 in the affected units, according to Alberta Health Services.

The latest on restrictions and reopenings:

• Canada's Western leaders plan to push Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week on a detailed plan and timeline to reopen international travel. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says the U.S. border closure is having a significant impact on economic recovery.
• Stage 3 of the reopening plan, which would lift a ban on indoor gatherings, is set to occur two weeks after 70 per cent of eligible recipients have had at least one dose of vaccine and hospitalization rates continue to decline.
• It would still include isolation requirements for confirmed cases of COVID-19 and some protective measures in continuing-care settings.
• Many of Alberta's COVID-19 public health restrictions were lifted June 10 as the province entered Stage 2 of a three-stage plan.
• Stage 2 required 60 per cent of those 12 and older to have had at least one vaccine shot and fewer than 500 infected patients in hospitals. 
• Entertainment venues, including movie theatres, casinos and museums, are being allowed to reopen at one-third capacity.
• Restaurants can seat diners inside rather than just on patios, and private social gatherings outdoors can have up to 20 people.
• There are no longer any restrictions on youth and adult sports.
• Up to 150 people are being allowed at public outdoor events, and grandstands for sports and other entertainment can open at one-third capacity.
• Masking and distancing requirements are still in place.
• A full list of current restrictions is available on the province's website.
• Albertans can track the province's immunization progress on alberta.ca.

(Note the latest daily count of new cases in the above chart will usually vary slightly from the net new cases Alberta Health announces each day. For more on why, click here.)

The latest on vaccines:

• Alberta is offering $3 million in lottery winnings to encourage more people to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Three $1-million prizes will be available for Albertans aged 18 and over who have had at least one dose. To register, eligible Albertans must fill out their information at alberta.ca/lottery.
• The province has also added travel prizes to its lottery.
• Albertans who received their first doses of COVID-19 vaccine as late as April can start booking their second shots immediately, Premier Jason Kenney announced on June 10.
• 69.9 per cent of Albertans aged 12 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine, while 24.2 per cent of Albertans aged 12 and older have received two doses.
• 20.6 per cent of the total population of Alberta have received two doses of the vaccine.
• Albertans vaccinated in May are currently scheduled to begin booking their second dose starting June 28. The province says it will continue to accelerate second dose rollout if supply allows.
• Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, said the delta variant, first identified in India and now driving a wave of new cases in the U.K., made up about five per cent of the total number of new variants found in the province last week.
• Some experts are warning the delta variant could take over as Alberta's dominant strain by the end of June — potentially bringing a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases in the fall. 
• 922,276 Albertans are fully immunized with two doses of vaccine.
• Alberta has now administered 3,583,406 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, including Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca-Oxford.
• The province allows those who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for their first dose to get either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for the second, or they can get another AstraZeneca vaccine shot.
• A mobile vaccination clinic led by Siksika Health Services began offering vaccine shots on June 8 to marginalized people, temporary foreign workers and individuals who are homeless or in supportive living facilities.
• AHS has opened a drive-thru immunization clinic in Calgary. The clinic, located at 911 32 Ave. N.E., is by appointment only. It will operate 8:20 a.m. to 9:20 p.m. seven days a week, with capacity for up to 1,000 appointments each day. A maximum of four people in each vehicle can be immunized, but all will require booked appointments. 

WATCH | Alberta hopes lottery will motivate people to get vaccinated:

Alberta bets lottery to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake

3 years ago

Duration 1:56

The Alberta government has released details of a $3-million lottery designed as an incentive for more people to get a COVID-19 vaccine and allow the province to fully reopen by July 1.

See which regions are being hit hardest:

Here is the detailed regional breakdown of active cases as reported by the province on Thursday.

• Calgary zone: 1,078.
• Edmonton zone: 535.
• Central zone: 284.
• South zone: 88.
• North zone: 486.
• Unknown: 0.

You can see active cases by local health area on the following interactive map. Scroll, zoom and click on the map for more information:

How Alberta compares to other provinces and territories:

Find out which neighbourhoods or communities have the most cases, how hard people of different ages have been hit, the ages of people in hospital, how Alberta compares to other provinces and more in: Here are the latest COVID-19 statistics for Alberta — and what they mean.

Here are the latest Alberta COVID-19 stories: