COVID-19 in Sask: More restrictions coming after 6th-straight day of triple-digit case increases

Saskatchewan continues to log triple-digit increases of COVID-19 cases and officials say more restrictions may be in store.

The province announced 111 new cases Thursday, the sixth-straight day with more than 100. A news release from the province said chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab is considering new restrictions set to be announced on Friday. 

The number of people in hospital also continued to climb, hitting 49 Thursday, with 36 receiving in-patient care and 13 receiving intensive care.

Thursday's count had the most concurrent hospitalizations the province has seen since the beginning of the pandemic. The number of people in hospital has increased in each of the last four days.

The province has seen cases jump significantly over the last month, with 1,459 known active cases Thursday compared to 215 a month previous.

The rise has spurred hundreds of doctors around the province to sign a letter calling for more action from the provincial government. Earlier Thursday, Saskatchewan NDP Leader Ryan Meili called for a province-wide mask mandate. 

"Let's be looking at what could prevent us [from] getting into a situation like Manitoba, Alberta, North Dakota are in," Meili said at a news conference. 

Earlier this month, Premier Scott Moe and Shahab announced a mask mandate for indoor spaces in Saskatoon, Prince Albert and Regina. That will remain in place until at least early December.

Stricter regulations on gatherings were also announced, with private gatherings limited to 10 people and public gatherings limited to 30 people.

Moe stressed that while masks are an important tool, people "should be under no illusion that a mandatory mask policy will solve everything," noting much of the spread is taking place at private gatherings among friends and family.

"We cannot let our guard down, even when we are just with our family or our friends," he said. "In fact, that may be one of the places we are most vulnerable." 

Moe encouraged people to continue practising good hand hygiene, maintaining physical distancing and limiting unnecessary travel, both in the province and inter provincially.

Of the province's 4,437 known cases to date, 2,949 are considered recovered. One-hundred and twenty seven were health-care workers and 900 were people younger than 19.

Twenty-five of Thursday's new cases are in the Regina area, 24 are in the Saskatoon area, five are in the far north west, eight are in the far north central, six are in the far north east, seven are in the north west, eight are in the north central, seven are in the central east, four are in the south west, five are in the south central and seven are in the south east.

As of Thursday, the province has processed 289,366 COVID-19 tests, with 2,145 tests processed on Wednesday. 

Saskatchewan has logged 29 deaths related to COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. 

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