The biggest single-day number of deaths from positive COVID-19 cases in almost three weeks was recorded Tuesday in Saskatchewan. Four people passed because of the novel coronavirus, bringing the provincial death toll to 560. The four fatalities were a person in their 50s from the South East zone, another in their 60s from Saskatoon, a senior in their 70s from the North East and a resident in the 80-and-over age range from the North Central zone.

       Otherwise, there were 47 new cases of COVID-19 in Tuesday’s update from the Ministry of Health. Add in 95 recoveries and the active case count is at 722 while the seven-day average for new virus cases is at 70. Ninety-seven individuals are in hospital with 15 of those infections receiving treatment in an I-C-U. The percentages of immunized Saskatchewan adults aged 18-and-over and residents aged 12-and-over remain at 69 and 67, respectively, despite 6,880 people receiving a dose of COVID-19 vaccine on Monday for a provincial total of 910,322 shots administered.

Daily COVID-19 Statistics

There are 47 new cases of COVID-19 to report in Saskatchewan on June 15, bringing the provincial total to 48,043 cases.

The new cases are located in the following zones: Far North West, 2; Far North East, 1; North West, 6; North Central, 3; North East, 1; Saskatoon, 12; Central West, 3; Central East, 2; Regina, 14; South Central, 1; and South East, 1.  One case is pending residence information.

Four news deaths were reported today.  One death was reported in the 80+ age group in the North Central Zone, one death was reported in the 70 to 79 age group in the North East zone, one death was reported in the 60 to 69 age group in Saskatoon, and one death was reported in the 50 to 59 age group in the South East zone.

Recoveries total 46,761 and 722 cases are considered active.

There are 97 people in hospital.  Eighty-two people are receiving inpatient care: North West, 10; North Central, 8; North East, 1; Saskatoon, 29; Central East, 5; Regina, 23; South West, 2; South Central, 2; and South East; 2.  Fifteen people are in intensive care: North West, 1; North Central, 2; Saskatoon, 6; Central East, 1; Regina, 4; and South West, 1.

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 case number is 70 (5.7 per 100,000).  This is the lowest seven-day average since November 1, 2020.  A chart comparing today’s average to data collected over the past several months is available at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness/covid-19/seven-day-average-of-new-covid-cases.

There were 1,478 COVID-19 tests processed in Saskatchewan on June 14, 2021.

To date, 891,190 COVID-19 tests have been processed in Saskatchewan.  As of June 13, 2021, when other provincial and national numbers were available, Saskatchewan’s per capita rate was 750,659 tests performed per million population.  The national rate was 941,593.

As of June 14, 11,750 variants of concern have been identified by screening in Saskatchewan, reported in the following zones: Far North West, 286; Far North Central, 1; Far North East, 79; North West, 752; North Central, 590; North East, 77; Saskatoon, 2,025; Central West, 124; Central East, 629; Regina, 4,740; South West, 397; South Central, 869; and South East, 1,113.  There are 68 screened VOCs with residence pending.

New lineage results were reported for 239 Variants of Concern today.  Of the 6,438 VOCs with lineages identified by whole genome sequencing in Saskatchewan, 6,130 are Alpha (B.1.1.7), 231 are Gamma (P.1), 67 are Delta (B.1.617.2) and 10 are Beta (B.1.351).

Confirmed variant of concern cases may appear in both columns on the website, depending on testing for that case.  Adding the cases identified by screening and those that have received whole genome sequencing may result in double-counting individual cases.

Further statistics on the total number of cases among health care workers, breakdowns of total cases by source of infection, age, sex and region, total tests to date, per capita testing rate and current numbers of confirmed variants of concern can be found at http://www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-cases.

Vaccines Reported

An additional 6,880 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given in Saskatchewan, bringing the total number of vaccines administered in the province to 910,322.

The 6,880 doses of COVID-19 vaccine reported today were administered to residents living in the following zones: Far North West, 12; Far North East, 210; North West, 708; North Central, 487; North East, 59; Saskatoon, 2,886; Central West, 108; Central East, 352; Regina, 1,560; South West, 32; South Central, 119; and South East, 119.  There were 228 doses administered with zone of residence pending.

Seventy-nine per cent of those over the age of 40 have received their first dose. Seventy-four per cent of those 30+ have received their first dose.  Sixty-nine per cent of those 18+ have received their first dose, while sixty-seven per cent of those 12+ have also received their first dose.

Status of Population Vaccinations, as of June 14, 2021
Group	Estimated Population	Received First Dose	Fully  Vaccinated
Age 80+	51,304	47,190 (92%)	41,626 (81%)
Age 70-79	79,817	72,651 (91%)	56,873 (71%)
Age 60-69	138,471	117,297 (85%)	64,956 (47%)
Age 50-59	147,466	108,181 (73%)	24,443 (17%)
Age 40-49	151,896	102,727 (68%)	11,077 (7%)
Age 30-39	183,246	104,679 (57%)	10,561 (6%)
Age 18-29	189,909	95,895 (50%)	7,703 (4%)
Age 12-17	90,987	44,108 (48%)	267 (0%)

Note: Age is calculated on the date of the most recent dose.  Someone age 69 at their first dose and 70 at their second will now be counted in the 70-79 group for both doses, resulting in a decrease in the 60-69 first dose number.

All vaccine administration details for the province, including first and second doses, can be found at https://dashboard.saskatchewan.ca/health-wellness.

Second Doses Available to 50+

All residents 12+ can receive their first dose and second dose vaccinations are open to residents 50+ or anyone who received their first dose on or before April 15.  Individuals diagnosed with or being treated for cancer and those who have received solid organ transplants will receive a letter of eligibility in the mail that will allow them priority access to a second dose.

Second doses are also available in the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District to all residents 18+, based on the product’s recommended interval from their first dose.

Eligibility to book for second doses is based on age or date of first dose.  Residents who meet at least one of these criteria are eligible for their second dose.

When all persons 12 and older become eligible to receive their second doses starting June 24, vaccinations will be provided based on the manufacturer interval.  For Moderna, this is 28 days after first dose.  For Pfizer, this is 21 days after first dose.  Note that residents may receive their second doses up to four months following their first dose but it’s highly recommended that you receive your second dose as soon as you are eligible.

A limited number of first doses of AstraZeneca have been administered since May 5 to those individuals who have contraindication for mRNA vaccines.  If you received AstraZeneca as recommended by your health care provider after May 5, arrangements will be made to administer your second dose based on current, recommended intervals.

Eligibility for 2nd Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine
Age	OR	1st Dose Date  (on or before)	Eligible for 2nd Dose (on or after)
50+	OR	April 15	June 14
45+	OR	May 1	June 17
Eligibility determined by date of first dose		May 15	June 21
Everyone age 12+, receiving 2nd dose according to manufacturer interval (3/4 weeks)			June 24

Saskatchewan is expecting 74,880 doses of Pfizer and 89,880 doses of Moderna this week.

Remember that while one dose of COVID-19 vaccine provides good protection against transmission, two doses are required for optimal protection, particularly against the Delta variant.  Please receive your second dose as soon as you are eligible and maintain all public health measures until at least two weeks after your second dose.

Vaccination appointments can be booked through the Saskatchewan Health Authority online at www.saskatchewan.ca/COVID19 or by calling 1-833-SaskVax (1-833-727-5829).

A map of participating pharmacies across the province is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-pharmacies.  This online tool includes links to pharmacy booking websites and provides details on the vaccine brand being offered at each location.

For street addresses and hours of operation for drive-thru and walk-in clinics, see www.saskatchewan.ca/drive-thru-vax.

Please do not call until you are eligible to book your vaccination appointment.  If you do not know the date of your first dose or have misplaced the wallet card provided at the time of your first dose, 1-833-SaskVax can provide you with that date, or check your Immunization History on your MySaskHealthRecord account.

There may be clinic options outside your community and residents are encouraged to consider those alternate locations for immunization.  Additional stops should be avoided if possible when travelling to another community for an appointment.  More clinics will be added as new vaccine shipments are received.

During your second-dose appointment, the clinic or pharmacy will validate the timing and brand of your first dose to ensure you are receiving your second dose within the recommended timeframe.  The type of vaccine available at each location will be advertised.  Additional information on how to book your appointment is available at www.saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine-booking.