Northern Sask. holds Canada’s highest COVID-19 case rate by far, data shows
Saskatchewan’s far north COVID-19 case rate in the last seven days is sitting at 1,180 per 100,000 people – the highest across Canada.
The northern region, which includes Prince Albert, is the second-highest at 556 per 100,000 people, according to data from the federal government.
The Government of Saskatchewan has brought back some measures in hopes of dropping the spread of COVID-19, such as mandatory masking and required self-isolation when you test positive.
While the Athabasca Health Authority’s (AHA) CEO is happy the province is reinstating preventative measures, he said a drop in cases will also take public cooperation.
“The provincial government can only do so much, but it’s also up to all of us as well to do what we can, to make sure that we are double vaccinated, make sure that we still continue to practice safe distancing, staying within our bubbles, washing our hands,” said Allan Adam.
The AHA serves communities such as Fond du Lac, Stony Rapids and Black Lake.
Adam said the vaccine rates in AHA communities are slowly rising, but are still too low. About 50 per cent of people in Fond du Lac have received their first dose, for example.
The AHA will be giving out gift cards as vaccine incentives, he said.
Starting Oct. 1, the province is also making vaccines or proof of negative tests mandatory to participate in many non-essential activities, like in restaurants, movie theatres and casinos.
“We just run the risk of further spreading it if we continue to go just as is after July 11, everything just opened up,” said Adam.
“People thought everything was good and the next thing you know, COVID is coming back into our communities again.”
Stanley Mission, located northeast of La Ronge, had 114 active cases as of Thursday, according to the Lac La Ronge Indian Band.
The region that includes Stanley Mission, the far northeast, has 229 active cases among Indigenous communities served by the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.