Statement from the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada on May 19, 2021

On May 19, 2021, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, issued the following statement on COVID-19.

May 19, 2021 | Ottawa, ON | Public Health Agency of Canada

Today, during Personal Support Worker (PSW) Day, I want to acknowledge the essential work of PSWs and the dedicated care they provide to Canadians everyday and particularly during these most challenging times during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their compassionate care and critical services have supported a wide range of activities of daily living for people across Canada throughout the pandemic. In addition, these essential workers deliver many vital services that reduce the need for acute and inpatient care in healthcare settings. This provides a greater degree of comfort for individuals receiving care and helps to avoid placing additional pressure on the health system. Whether providing personal care tasks or supporting the many activities of daily living, the work of Canada's Personal Support Workers is essential to meeting the supportive, physical and psychosocial needs of clients and their families. To Personal Support Workers across Canada, thank you, for the vital services you provide every day across the health system, including the home and community sector, to positively impact individuals, families and communities in Canada.

As COVID-19 activity continues in Canada, we are tracking a range of epidemiological indicators to monitor where the disease is most active, where it is spreading and how it is impacting the health of Canadians and public health, laboratory and healthcare capacity. At the same time, the Public Health Agency of Canada is providing Canadians with regular updates on COVID-19 vaccines administered, vaccination coverage and ongoing monitoring of vaccine safety across the country. The following is the latest summary on national numbers and trends, and the actions we all need to be taking to reduce infection rates, while vaccination programs expand for the protection of all Canadians.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 1,338,141 cases of COVID-19, including 64,748 active cases and 25,018 deaths reported in Canada; these cumulative numbers tell us about the overall burden of COVID-19 illness to date. They also tell us, together with results of serological studies, that a large majority of Canadians remain susceptible to COVID-19. Multiple safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines, with unique advantages, are authorised for use in Canada. As vaccine delivery continues to ramp up, there is increasing optimism that widespread and lasting immunity can be achieved through COVID-19 vaccination. Benefits are being seen among groups targeted for priority vaccination and as vaccine coverage increases across Canada, we can expect further benefits to protect more Canadians over the coming weeks and months.

We are making steady progress, with a 28% decrease in reported active cases since the peak of the third wave in mid-April. However, as COVID-19 activity remains elevated in many jurisdictions, strong public health measures must be sustained where COVID-19 is circulating and individual precautions are important everywhere to drive infection rates down to low and manageable levels, while getting our vaccination rates as high as possible. While the latest national-level data show continued declines in disease activity, daily case counts remain very high. During the latest 7-day period (May 12-18), an average of 5,508 cases were being reported daily, a decrease of 22% compared to the week prior. Until vaccine coverage is sufficiently high to impact disease transmission more broadly in the community, we must maintain a high degree of caution with public health and individual measures and not ease restrictions too soon or too quickly where infection rates are high.

Elevated infection rates continue to impact lagging COVID-19 severity indicators, particularly in areas with sustained high levels of disease activity. Although we are seeing some decline in these trends, persistently high numbers of severe and critical illnesses have placed a prolonged and heavy strain on the health system and healthcare workforce. Provincial and territorial data indicate that an average of 3,600 people with COVID-19 were being treated in Canadian hospitals each day during the most recent 7-day period (May 12-18) representing a 9% decrease over last week. This includes, on average 1,339 people who were being treated in intensive care units (ICU), which is 4% lower than the previous week. Although the mortality trend has leveled off, with a 7-day average of 44 deaths reported daily (May 12-18), continued high rates of infection and high numbers of hospitalisations and critical care admissions could negatively impact this trend.

While COVID-19 continues to impact people of all ages in Canada, infection rates are highest among those under 60 years of age. Serious illness can occur at any age and evidence indicates that variants of concern can be associated with more severe illness and increased risk of death. Variants of concern (VOCs) now represent a majority of COVID-19 cases in Canada. Although four VOCs (B.1.1.7, B.1.351, P.1 and B.1.617) have been detected in most provinces and territories, the B.1.1.7 variant continues to account for the majority of VOCs sequenced to date in Canada. As the B.1.1.7 variant spreads more quickly and has been associated with increased severity, and as vaccines may be less effective against other variants, such as the P.1 and B.1.351 variants, it is even more important to remain vigilant with all available measures to suppress spread. While the impact of the B.1.617 variant, most recently designated as a VOC, is still being assessed to characterize its impact in the Canadian context, we know that vaccination, in combination with public health and individual measures are needed to reduce spread.

As vaccine eligibility expands, Canadians are urged to get vaccinated and support others to get vaccinated as vaccines become available to them. However, regardless of our vaccination status, Canadians are urged to remain vigilant, continue following local public health advice, and consistently maintain individual practices that keep us and our families safer, even as we're beginning to see the positive impacts of COVID-19 vaccines: stay home/self-isolate if you have any symptoms, think about the risks and reduce non-essential activities and outings to a minimum, avoid all non-essential travel, and maintain individual protective practices of physical distancing, hand, cough and surface hygiene and wearing a well-fitted and properly worn face mask as appropriate (including in shared spaces, indoors or outdoors, with people from outside of your immediate household).

For more information regarding the risks and benefits of vaccination, I encourage Canadians to reach out to your local public health authorities, healthcare provider, or other trusted and credible sources, such as Canada.ca and Immunize.ca. Working together, Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, Canada's Chief Medical Officers of Health and other health professionals across the country are closely monitoring vaccine safety, effectiveness and optimal use to adapt approaches. As the science and situation evolves, we are committed to providing clear and evidence-informed guidance in order to keep everyone in Canada safe and healthy.

Canadians can also go the extra mile by sharing credible information on COVID-19 risks and prevention practices and measures to reduce COVID-19 in communities and by downloading the COVID Alert app to break the cycle of infection and help limit the spread of COVID-19. Read my backgrounder to access more COVID-19 Information and Resources on ways to reduce the risks and protect yourself and others, including information on COVID-19 vaccination.

Contacts

Media Relations
Public Health Agency of Canada
613-957-2983
hc.media.sc@canada.ca