There are two new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on August 28, bringing the total to 1,611 reported cases.  The new cases are in the Far North West (1) and Saskatoon (1) zones.

Of the 1,611 reported cases, 44 are considered active.  A total of 1,543 people have recovered.

Three people are in hospital.  One person is receiving inpatient care in Saskatoon and two people are in intensive care in Saskatoon.

Investigations completed thus far have found that 20 of the 44 active cases are in communal living settings.

Of the 1,611 cases in the province:

• 234 cases are travellers;
• 824 are community contacts (including mass gatherings);
• 482 have no known exposures; and
• 71 are under investigation by local public health

Overall in Saskatchewan:

• 66 cases are healthcare workers; however, the source of the infections may not be related to healthcare in all instances.
• 266 cases involve people 19 years of age and under, while the remainder are adults. 518 cases are in the 20-39 age range; 493 are in the 40-59 age range; 277 are in the 60-79 age range; and 57 are in the 80-plus range.
• 51 per cent of the cases are females and 49 per cent are males.
• 24 deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported to date.
• There are: 
  • 413 cases from the south area (213 south west, 189 south central, 11 south east)
  • 353 cases from the far north area (347 far north west, 6 far north east)
  • 262 cases from the north area (128 north west, 68 north central, 66 north east)
  • 257 cases from the Saskatoon area
  • 194 cases from the central area (161 central west, 33 central east)
  • 132 cases from the Regina area

To date, 136,333 COVID‐19 tests have been performed in Saskatchewan.  As of August 26, 2020, when other provincial and national numbers were available from the Public Health Agency of Canada, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 97,632 people tested per million population.  The national rate was 140,838 people tested per million population.

Yesterday, 1,561 COVID-19 tests were performed in Saskatchewan.

Back to School and Your Virtual Household

Whether you are a parent with children returning to school settings this fall, a student heading to post-secondary campuses or educational staff, your “bubble” is about to change.  Your current virtual household and regular contacts have been in place through summer, but your list of contacts will expand with the cohorts set out in the school plans or by your workplace.

Assess your current virtual household and regular contacts.  Do you have high-risk people within that circle?  Do you have school-age children or educational staff in that circle who will be monitoring their health more closely once school starts?

Public health will require you identify all your known contacts if you receive a positive test, as part of their contact investigations.  Consider reducing any expanded, virtual households to help keep the number of contacts to a number you can reliably report.

COVID-19 transmission within our community may increase as we move in the fall to indoor spaces and as schools restart.  Wash your hands frequently, maintain physical distancing and abide by the masking policies of that business or institution, but above all stay home if you are sick.

Please note that restrictions on gatherings remain in place:  indoor gatherings of up to 30 are permitted where space allows for two metres of physical distancing between participants.  Outdoor gatherings of up to 30 people are permitted with appropriate physical distancing.

COVID-19 Testing

COVID-19 testing is now available to anyone who requests it, regardless of whether they have symptoms or not.  A referral for testing can be made by contacting HealthLine 811.  Contact your physician’s office if you are experiencing worsening symptoms.  If you require urgent care, call 911.

General COVID-19 Information

General public inquiries may be directed to COVID19@health.gov.sk.ca. 

Find the most up-to-date version of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan at www.saskatchewan.ca/re-open.