Thread by @bkives

Manitoba announced 400 new cases of #COVID19 and 11 more deaths on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2020.

Active cases: 7,385*
Total caseload: 12,007
Recovered: 4,432
Deaths: 190

*Inflated due to data-entry backlog

Manitoba #COVID19 patients in hospital: 249 (new record, up 9)

In ICU: 40 (down 1)

Five-day Manitoba #COVID19 test-positivity rate: 14.2 per cent (new record)

Tests completed Tuesday: 3,050

The latest Manitobans to succumb to #COVID19:

• A Southern woman in her 50s
• A Winnipeg man in his 60s
• Two Interlake-Eastern men in their 70s
• Two Southern men in their 80s
• Two Winnipeg men in their 80s (Golden Links Lodge outbreak)

1/2

• A Prairie Mountain woman in her 80s
• A Winnipeg man in his 90s
• A Winnipeg woman in her 90s (Golden Links Lodge outbreak)

Regional breakdown of new Manitoba #COVID19 cases:

• 239 Winnipeg
• 93 Southern
• 40 Northern
• 20 Interlake-Eastern
• 8 Prairie Mountain

New fine: $298 for not wearing a mask in a public places.

Enforcement officials can issue this fine.

Roussin: Someone pretending to be him is calling businesses, telling them to close.

This is a hoax.

New #COVID19 outbreak declarations:

Health Science Centre, units GH3 and GA4

Siragusa: 102 beds in critical care now, 88 in use

- About half are COVID patients
- 38 of 77 patients on ventilators are COVID positive

Siragusa says staff transition to ICU is still taking place.

Partly done by limiting surgeries

Very disruptive. 771 elective/non-urgent surgeries cancelled since October.

Bethesda Hospital update in Steinbach:

Emergency department now seeing more stable patient volumes. Other hospitals helping out. Surgical staff redeployed.

Health Sciences Centre outbreak:

- 29 patients and 23 staff at HSC infected on three units
- two deaths

Siragusa on space for homeless or at-risk people who test positive or awaiting test results:

- The first, 39-space homeless isolation site remains full
-Second, 22-space site is near capacity
- Third, 140-space site will open soon

Siragusa now repeats yesterday's announcement of dedicated testing site for health-care workers and first responders.

Siragusa:

Home-care service is dropping to spring levels because home-care workers are helping out at personal care homes.

Roussin clarifies $298 no-mask ticket is only indoors.

Ticket can be issued immediately.

[There is no *order* to wear masks at outdoor public places. That's only advice.]

[Yes, the language in October led me and many others to assume something different.]

Home-care worker redeployment: Decisions will be made on who can be shifted to care homes and who can not.

Roussin again says MB is reviewing rules governing goods that can be sold in retail stores.

Roussin: 500 cases over past 7 days have no known transmission chain.

[That's a clear indication how bad community transmission has become in Manitoba.]

Roussin: Manitoba anticipating vaccine in January with some degree of optimism but quantities will be low at first.

"We'll be dealing with this virus for many more months, probably a year."

Roussin asked about reports of delayed or nonexistent contact tracing in schools.

Says often, only close contacts are notified.

"It has been done, it's just those particular people are not determined to be close contacts."