Recoveries continue to outpace new cases of COVID-19

The number of people who have recovered from COVID-19 in Ottawa continues to outpace the number of new infections, public health officials said Monday.

In its latest report, Ottawa Public Health (OPH) says 90 more people have been cleared to leave isolation, while only 23 new cases have been confirmed. It's the fourth consecutive report in which new recoveries surpassed new infections.

At the same time, there have been 10 more deaths from the respiratory illness since the health agency's last report.

The numbers represent recent cases confirmed and logged by OPH in the last 24 hours, and don't necessarily reflect how many contracted or died from COVID-19 in that period.

According to OPH, there are currently 366 active cases in Ottawa, and 1,139 people have now recovered. There have been 171 deaths, about 90 per cent of them in long-term care homes and similar institutions.

There are likely more undiagnosed cases in the community, but the numbers could rise as testing criteria are gradually expanded.

Meanwhile, new projections from a partnership between OPH, The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa suggest a second peak can be avoided if Ottawans keep up their current level of physical distancing.

There are currently 22 patients in hospital, including three in the ICU. That's a considerable improvement from mid-April when as many as 43 people were in hospital, 18 of them in intensive care.

63% recovery rate across region

Across eastern Ontario and western Quebec, there have been more than 2,375 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Health units in the region report a total of 1,635, or about 63 per cent of all confirmed cases, have recovered.

Outside Ottawa, 64 deaths in the region have been linked to COVID-19.