COVID-19 in Alberta: 22 more deaths as hospitalization records continue to fall
Nine of Alberta’s top 10 highest counts of hospitalized patients have come this January, according to the province’s latest data update released on Wednesday.
Tuesday’s report of 1,377 COVID-19 patients in hospital was revised to a pandemic-high 1,443 on Wednesday.
The province’s latest COVID-19 hospitalization patient count stands at 1,418 as of Wednesday afternoon but will likely be revised upwards in the coming days.
- Infographics: COVID-19 in Alberta by the numbers
- COVID-19 in Edmonton: Numbers broken down by neighbourhood
That 1,418 also includes 109 patients in intensive care units, the same number as the end of last week.
Also on Wednesday, the province reported 23 more COVID-19 deaths spread across several days, with one death, a person in their 30s, removed.
The deaths were of individuals ranging in age from in their 40s to more than 80 years old and bring the total number of COVID-19 deaths up to 3,505.
Seventy-six Albertans have died in the last seven days.
There are now more than 47,000 known active cases in the province with more than 3,300 new cases reported over the weekend.
Earlier this month, the province introduced a number of new restrictions to testing eligibility with its chief medical officer of health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, estimating the true case count was more than 10 times than indicated by PCR results.
Alberta has now administered more than eight million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, with 80.2 per cent of the population having had at least one dose and 73.9 per cent having had two shots.
More than 31 per cent of Albertans have also received a third dose.
Unvaccinated Albertans are outnumbered nearly four-to-one by those who have had at least a first shot of vaccine, but remain many times more likely to experience a severe outcome due to COVID-19 including hospitalization or death.
The next data update is scheduled for Thursday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Monkeypox in Canada: Act now to stop it, expert urges, before it's too late
With 26 cases of monkeypox now confirmed in Canada, health officials warn that number will likely grow in the coming days and weeks. However, one expert says the outbreak can be stopped if the country works quickly to get it under control.

BREAKING | Supreme Court rules Quebec City mosque killer to be eligible for parole in 25 years
Canada's highest court has ruled that Alexandre Bissonnette, who murdered six people at the Quebec City mosque in 2017, will be eligible for parole after 25 years.
New firearms bill coming imminently from federal public safety minister
Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino will table new firearms legislation as early as next week, according to advance notice given to the House of Commons.
She smeared blood on herself and played dead: 11-year-old reveals chilling details of the massacre
An 11-year-old survivor of the Robb Elementary School massacre in Uvalde, Texas, feared the gunman would come back for her so she smeared herself in her friend's blood and played dead.
Man fatally shot by police near Toronto elementary school; SIU says BB gun recovered
One man is dead after being shot by police near a Toronto elementary school on Thursday afternoon. The incident sent hundreds of students into lockdown.
Canadian gymnast alleges sexual, emotional abuse by coach
Former Canadian gymnast Abby Pearson Spadafora said on Thursday she had suffered years of abuse at the hands of Olympic coach Dave Brubaker and his wife Elizabeth and called for an independent investigation of the sport.
Ancient volcanoes may have created a rare resource for lunar explorers
Ancient volcanic eruptions on the moon could provide an unexpected resource for future lunar explorers: water.
NRA opens gun convention in Texas after school massacre
The National Rifle Association begins its annual convention in Houston on Friday, and leaders of the powerful gun-rights lobbying group are gearing up to "reflect on" -- and deflect any blame for -- the deadly shooting earlier this week of 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
Views of NATO still strong in Canada, Germany: Nanos survey
A recent survey of Canadians and Germans shows both groups hold largely favourable views of NATO, at a time when more countries are looking to join the military alliance amid Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine.