Alberta’s chief medical officer says it is clear that there is an increase in COVID-19 transmission, but she will not say whether it is still the sixth wave.
The province reported 6,181 new cases of COVID-19 from PCR tests, 37 deaths and a total of 1,053 hospitalizations, including 48 in the intensive care unit.
The average positivity rate remained stable at 26.6 percent, but wastewater levels rose in Edmonton, Calgary and many other communities, said Health Secretary Jason Kopping.
“This is not surprising given the portability of BA.2 and the increase in contacts as people resume their normal daily activities,” he said.
“We may see an additional increase in the next few weeks, but we are prepared for that.”
Dr. Dean Hinshaw agreed that the rise was not unexpected and did not know its size or how long it would last.
“Whatever we call it, whether it’s called the sixth wave or talking about boosting the show we’ve seen, we certainly all know the kinds of things that can help protect ourselves and the people around us, and these are the same things. “We’ve been talking about for a long time,” she said, referring to vaccines, masking and hand washing.
Alberta will update its COVID-19 data again next Wednesday.
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