Alberta reports 4,037 new COVID-19 over 3 days, 21 new deaths

Alberta reports 4,037 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, as the province released three days of data from the weekend.

The province also reported 21 new COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total to 2,752.

The 4,037 new cases were detected from Friday to Sunday:

• Oct.1: 1,629 new cases (14,532 tests)
• Oct 2: 1,282 new cases (14,316 tests)
• Oct 3: 1,126 new cases (10,417 tests)

COVID-19 continues to put significant strain on the province's health-care system. There are currently 1,079 being treated in hospital with COVID, including 257 in intensive care. About 74 per cent of those currently in hospital have not been vaccinated. 

For the first time in months, Alberta is reporting an R-value below 1. The R-value is the average number of COVID-19 infections transmitted by each diagnosed case.

An R-value below 1 means transmission is no longer growing. Province-wide, the R-value for Sept. 27 to Oct. 3 is 0.92, with a confidence interval between 0.90 and 0.94. In Edmonton zone, the R-value is 0.86 (0.83-0.90 confidence interval), while in Calgary zone its 0.93 (0.92 to 0.97). The rest of Alberta is 0.94 (0.92-0.97 confidence interval). 

Despite the lower R-value, the province did report a modest increase in active cases over the weekend. There are now 20,674 active cases in Alberta, an increase of 459 from Friday's update. Here's how active cases break down regionally: 

• Calgary zone: 4,930
• Edmonton zone: 4,903
• Central zone: 4,379
• North zone: 4,211
• South zone: 2,224
• Unknown: 27

About 84.2 per cent of the province's eligible population (over the age of 12) has had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 74.9 per cent have had two. About 63.7 per cent of the province's total population have had both required doses.