Coronavirus: What's happening in Canada and around the world March 14
Canada has now administered more than 3 million COVID-19 vaccine doses
The latest:
- AstraZeneca says its vaccine review found no evidence of increased blood clot risks.
- Federal government approving more hotels to receive returning travellers.
- Ontario's online vaccine booking system to go live Monday.
- Alberta confirms 1st cases of variant 1st detected in Brazil.
- Have a question about the coronavirus pandemic? You can reach us at COVID@cbc.ca
Canada has now administered more than three million COVID-19 vaccine doses as of Sunday, according to a CBC News tally.
The milestone comes as provinces across the country expand access to vaccines.
New Brunswick residents 85 and older are now eligible to book appointments with pharmacies to get vaccinated as of Sunday.
Quebec, which is already vaccinating people ages 70 and up across the province or 65 and up in Montreal, will expand its booking system as of Monday to add some 350 pharmacies to the list of places where people can get shots.
Manitoba says eligibility now includes more age groups and health-care workers.
In Ontario, the province's vaccine booking system and support desk are set to go live on Monday. People who are aged 80 and older will be eligible to book appointments.
Saskatchewan announced that anyone who is 70 or older can book an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday.
In Alberta, the province says they're nearing the maximum number of bookings it can handle for its current supply of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine. The province was initially given 58,500 doses of the vaccine.
And in B.C., people 84 years of age or older can begin booking COVID-19 vaccinations on Monday. In a release, the province said it is a week ahead of its vaccine booking schedule. As the week progresses, people in the 80-to-84 age range can call for bookings.
What's happening across Canada
As of 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, Canada had reported 909,162 cases of COVID-19, with 31,672 cases considered active. A CBC News tally of deaths stood at 22,463.
In British Columbia, the superintendent of Surrey's school district — the one hit hardest by the pandemic in the province — says it is pursuing targeted measures for more vulnerable schools.
Jordan Tinney says new measures include prohibiting parents from entering schools without the principal's permission, moving pre-kindergarten StrongStart programs online, asking students to leave the premises right after school and increasing monitoring of staff rooms.
Alberta Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw announced the province has identified its first cases of a coronavirus variant first detected in Brazil. Hinshaw says cases are travel-related, that the individuals involved are isolating and that contact tracing is being conducted.
I know any new variant cases can create anxiety but remember we are working hard to prevent their spread. These variants are spread by close contact & measures that protect you from other strains – distancing, masking, washing hands – will also protect you from this variant.(4/5)
—@CMOH_AlbertaSaskatchewan saw 98 new cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths on Sunday.
Manitoba announced 44 new cases and an additional death.
Ontario registered 1,747 new cases — the most since Feb. 7 — and 15 more deaths. However, Health Minister Christine Elliott said today's number was inflated due to a data error in the provincial system.
Quebec confirmed 674 new cases five more deaths.
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New Brunswick reported five new cases.
Nova Scotia added one new infection.
Newfoundland and Labrador has no new cases for the second consecutive day, closing out a quiet weekend that saw the province settle into lower alert levels and eased restrictions.
What's happening around the world
As of Sunday, more than 119.5 million people around the world had been reported to having COVID-19, according to a tracking tool maintained by the U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University. Of those, more than 67.7 million were listed as recovered. The global death toll stood at more than 2.6 million.
In Europe, officials say the Paris region may be headed toward a new lockdown as new variants of the virus fill up intensive care units and limited vaccine supplies drag down inoculation efforts in the French capital.
In Africa, the United Nations says more than 14 million vaccine doses have been delivered to the continent in the past three weeks through COVAX, a UN-backed initiative aimed at ensuring equal access to vaccines.
In Asia, Pakistani health and administrative authorities have imposed a partial lockdown in the country's largest province, Punjab, and the northern part of the country amid a third wave.
In the Americas, more than 25 per cent of Chileans has now received at least one shot a COVID-19 vaccine, placing the country of 19 million among the top nations in the world at vaccinating its population.
With files from The Associated Press and The Canadian Press
