There are four new cases of COVID-19 in Saskatchewan to report on June 8, 2020; three in Saskatoon and one in the Far North region.
Two residents of the Far North region who tested positive for COVID-19 have died: one individual was in their 60s and the second was in their 70s. This brings the total number of deaths in the province to 13.
Of the 654 reported COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan, 17 are considered active. A total of 624 individuals have recovered.
There is currently one person in intensive care, in Saskatoon.
Of the 654 cases in the province:
• 144 cases are travellers;
• 393 are community contacts (including mass gatherings);
• 79 have no known exposures; and
• 38 are under investigation by local public health.
Overall in Saskatchewan:
• 51 cases are health care workers; however, the source of the infections may not be related to health care in all instances.
• 260 of the cases are from the Far North, 173 are from the Saskatoon area, 112 from the North, 80 from the Regina area, 17 from the South and 12 from the Central region.
• 98 cases involve people 19 years of age and under, while the remainder are adults.
• 232 cases are in the 20-39 age range; 199 are in the 40-59 age range; 107 are in the 60-79 age range; and 18 are in the 80-plus range.
• 52 per cent of the cases are females and 48 per cent are males.
• 13 deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported to date.
To date, 52,229 COVID-19 tests have been performed in the province. As of June 6, 2020, when other provincial and national numbers were last available from the Public Health Agency of Canada, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 39,640 people tested per million population. The national rate was 50,462 people tested per million population.
Phase 3 Begins, Outdoor Playgrounds and Beaches to Open June 12
Phase 3 of Re-Open Saskatchewan begins today, June 8, 2020.
Effective today, restaurants and licensed establishments are able to open at 50 per cent capacity, personal care services not opened in Phase 2 are permitted to open, and gyms and other fitness facilities are able to open.
Guidelines are now posted to assist the re-opening of places of worship and child care facilities as part of Phase 3.
Limits on public and private gatherings have now been increased to a maximum of 15 indoors and 30 outdoors. The government has also announced that outdoor playgrounds and beaches and associated washrooms can re-open on Friday, June 12.
Guidelines for these facilities will be included in the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan later today and will include measures such as maintaining physical distancing, frequent handwashing and enhanced cleaning and disinfection of rental equipment and washrooms.
Effective today, travel restrictions in Northwest Saskatchewan have been lifted, and the Northern Village of La Loche has moved into phases 1 and 2 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan. The Government of Saskatchewan and the Chief Medical Health Officer continue to carefully monitor the transmission of COVID-19 to inform decisions regarding the pace at which restrictions can be lifted or put back in place if required.
Emergency Rooms Re-Opening
The Saskatchewan Health Authority will soon be re-opening eight of the 12 regional emergency rooms temporarily closed as part of the health system readiness plan as hospitals have been converted to alternate level of care sites across the province. This helped build capacity for any potential surge in COVID-19 cases and to protect against outbreaks in the medical facilities.
Target timelines in each of the eight communities set to re-open ERs in June:
• June 12 – Kerrobert
• June 16 – Leader and Arcola
• June 18 – Preeceville
• June 22 – Biggar and Oxbow
• June 24 – Davidson
• June 25 – Herbert
Please note that these dates may be subject to the status of active COVID-19 positive cases and ability to meet all required safety criteria and human resourcing requirements for re-opening. The SHA continues to work on ER resumption planning for the four community hospitals in Broadview, Radville, Lanigan and Wolseley.
Domestic Flights
Posted Travel information related to COVID-19, including all flights returning to Saskatchewan with a confirmed case of COVID-19 are available on the Public Health Agency of Canada website. Two domestic flights have been added: AC 1129 Toronto-Saskatoon on May 29 and WS 3370 Calgary-Saskatoon on May 30 (https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/latest-travel-health-advice/exposure-flights-cruise-ships-mass-gatherings.html).
COVID-19 Testing Expanded
Testing for COVID-19 is also now available to anyone currently working outside the home, or anyone returning to work as part of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan.
Testing is also available to:
• Those being admitted to acute care for more than 24 hours, including expectant mothers.
• Immunocompromised individuals and their health care providers.
If you are experiencing symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, headaches, aches and pains, sore throat, chills, runny nose or a loss of your sense of taste or smell, contact HealthLine 811 or your family physician for advice on whether you should be tested for COVID-19. You can also take the online self-assessment at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19.
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.