Manitoba is reporting 273 new cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths from the illness on Saturday, a provincial news release says.

Most&nbsp;of the cases announced Saturday were in the Winnipeg health region, which reported 199 new COVID-19 infections. There are also 34 new cases in the&nbsp;Prairie Mountain Health region, 17 in the Northern Health Region, 14 in the Interlake-Eastern health region and nine in&nbsp;Southern Health.

The latest deaths from COVID-19 are two&nbsp;people in their 60s —a man from the Southern Health region, linked to an outbreak at the Emerson Health Centre, and&nbsp;a woman from the Northern Health Region.

The number of more contagious coronavirus variant cases identified in Manitoba shot up by 249 Saturday,&nbsp;bringing the total number to 2,344,&nbsp;

according to the province's online dashboard

B117 coronavirus variant now dominant strain in Manitoba

Manitoba will no longer notify people in most areas of the province if they have the B117 coronavirus variant because it has now become the dominant strain. 

COVID-19 test kits are pictured on March 11, 2020, the day the WHO declared coronavirus a pandemic.

COVID-19 TEST KITS

Coronavirus variants of concern are now responsible for half of all new COVID-19 cases in Manitoba.

Manitoba's five-day test positivity rate rose to 7.3 per cent, from 7.2 per cent on Friday. In Winnipeg, that rate went up slightly to 8.3 per cent from 8.2.

There have now been a total of&nbsp;38,995 COVID-19 cases identified in Manitoba since the start of the pandemic, of which 2,468 are considered active and 35,551 recovered.

There have been 976 deaths from the illness.

On Friday, 3,346&nbsp;COVID-19 tests were done in Manitoba.

Data on hospitalizations wasn't available on Saturday due to a technical issue. The day before, the province reported&nbsp;149 people were in hospital with COVID-19,&nbsp;including 39 in intensive care.&nbsp;

A quarter of hospitalizations were linked to variants of concern, the province said Friday, and&nbsp;one in four COVID-19 patients in hospital was&nbsp;a person under the age of 50.

Youth movement: How vaccines shifted the pandemic burden to kids, teens and young adults

During the third wave of the pandemic, COVID-19 has become a young person's disease. Most people getting sick in Manitoba are under 30 — and that is bound to continue for weeks.

Silhouetted figures are shown dining in a restaurant.

Young adults hitting the social scene are putting themselves and others at risk of COVID-19, says Dr. Philippe R. S. Lagacé-Wiens.

Shutterstock - Huge file

Manitobans in their 20s now make up the largest cohort of COVID-19 cases. 

Manitoba vaccine eligibility expands to include pregnant adults

Manitoba announced Friday it is expanding eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination, including opening up vaccination at supersites and pop-up clinics to pregnant people age 18 and older.

The province of Ontario is making the AstraZeneca vaccine available to people 40 and up at select pharmacies.

AstraZeneca

Manitoba is making the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine available to anyone 30 and older with certain priority health conditions.

The province also reported Saturday that an&nbsp;outbreak at Lions Prairie Manor Personal Care Home in Portage la Prairie is now over.

Places where there have been possible public exposures to COVID-19 are 

483,347 vaccine doses have been administered in the province

&nbsp;as of Saturday, bringing the rate&nbsp;of&nbsp;Manitobans 18 and older who have received at least one dose to 37.6 per cent.

Manitoba's five-day test positivity rate was 7.3 per cent Saturday, up from 7.2 per cent on Friday. In Winnipeg, that rate went up slightly to 8.3 per cent from 8.2.

273 new COVID-19 cases reported in Manitoba on Saturday, along with deaths of 2 people in 60s

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