Quebec's First COVID-19 Report In 4 Days Shows 10 More Deaths & 614 Total Hospitalizations
That's 141 more hospitalizations since the last report.
Quebec released its first COVID-19 report since December 23 on Monday morning, showing 10 additional deaths and a total of 614 hospitalizations — an increase of 141 since the last report.
Of those people in the hospital due to COVID-19, 109 are in intensive care, up from 91 as of December 22.
In a tweet, Health Minister Christian Dubé shared a breakdown of changes in the number of hospitalizations between December 23 and 26. 84 COVID-19 patients were admitted to the hospital on December 23 (net +16), 67 on the 24th (net +36), 76 on the 25th (net +45) and 93 on the 26th (net +44).
The province also reported 8,231 new COVID-19 infections on Monday, though officials have warned that official case counts are likely an underestimation given the introduction of rapid at-home testing.
The last daily case count, from December 23, showed 9,397 new infections — a new record.
Premier François Legault has repeatedly stressed that the number of hospitalizations is now the province's most important benchmark. In the previous week, the provincial government introduced a number of new health restrictions, including the closure of bars and gyms, and a further limit on gathering sizes, with the aim of curbing hospital entries.
He also didn't rule out imposing additional measures.
"The measures we're announcing this evening, we believe that they're enough to keep control of the hospitals," he said on December 22.
"But we won't hesitate in the next few days if it is necessary to add other measures. It's important for everybody to understand this."