Sask. COVID-19 cases likely underreported due to drop in testing rates: health official
During a speech delivered on Monday, Premier Scott Moe again pointed to the lower number of newly reported COVID-19 cases as a sign that the public health measures that are already in place are working.
It is a statistic Moe has lately seemed keen to highlight.
"Our case numbers are decreasing," Moe said during the Oct. 18 news conference where he announced the transfer of Saskatchewan ICU patients to Ontario to help provide relief for the province's overburdened health care system.
"They are starting to drop, the cases in the province," Moe said the next day in an interview with CTV News.
However, a senior medical official says that in order to understand what the number actually means, it's critical to also look at how many people are getting swabbed.
“We’re also seeing the number of tests that have been done over the last number of days have been going down very quickly as well, while test positivity has remained high,” Dr. Cory Neudorf told CTV News.
“That tells us fewer people are going out for testing."
Neudorf is a senior medical health officer with the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA).
According to recently released SHA data, nearly half of people receiving treatment in hospital for COVID-19 were not tested prior to admission meaning the cases were undiagnosed — and unreported.
"Many people who end up testing positive in hospitals are testing positive because they got tested in hospital and that’s the first time they knew they had COVID,” Neudorf said.
Saskatchewan’s test positivity rate continues to trend north of 10 per cent, according to Neudorf.
Neudorf authored an Oct. 21 letter signed by 20 other medical health officers calling on Health Minister Paul Merriman to introduce limits on gathering sizes among other measures to try and reduce the strain on the province's health care system.
Moe has been consistent in his stance that no further measures are needed beyond the masking mandate and vaccination policy that are already in place in Saskatchewan.
One of the reasons Moe routinely cites for staying the course is the declining number of cases.
“I think what we are getting is almost an alternative reality, selective focus on certain pieces of information and data, rather than a whole focus or even focusing on data that really matters," said Nazeem Muhajarine, professor of community health and epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan.
According to SHA modelling released last week, without additional measures, ICU admissions could surge in the winter beyond what's already been seen in the province during the fourth wave.
“We’re not sure if we’re at that peak, we certainly know from the modelling that if no further restrictions are put in place this peak will be a very long peak," Neudorf said.
"We’ll be at this and the level of strain on the healthcare system for many weeks yet."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring 4 others
A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, British authorities said.
Conservatives push motion calling for Carney to testify, say it's about 'accountability'
The federal Conservatives made good on their promise to push for former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney to testify before MPs, resulting in a heated political debate in Ottawa on Tuesday.
Freeland previews omnibus budget bill, proposed capital gains tax change left out
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
London Drugs stores remain closed, 'cybersecurity incident' may have breached personal data
London Drugs says it is working with third-party security experts as the company tries to reopen dozens of stores across Western Canada that were shuttered by a cybersecurity incident Sunday.
McGill requests 'police assistance' over pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University says it has 'requested police assistance' about the pro-Palestinian encampment on its lower field.