After nearly two weeks of detecting only a few new cases of COVID-19 per day, five new Manitobans tested positive for the virus, the highest total in days.
Since the outbreak began, 262 positive cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Manitoba. The province is tracking 88 active cases. None of the five positive tests were from the Northern Health Region.
Manitoba chief provincial health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said at a April 23 briefing that 324 people were tested April 22. Manitoba has processed more than 21,000 tests during the outbreak.
“Our testing capacity has increased, and many more people are now eligible to be tested, and we’re receiving far fewer samples than we have,” he said.
“We encourage symptomatic Manitobans who meet our criteria to be tested.”
Roussin added Manitoba’s testing capacity is larger than the demand for tests right now and if demand remains low, criteria will expand again.
Testing criteria expanded last week to all symptomatic people living in northern Manitoba, or working in an essential business.
Travel from southern Manitoba to northern Manitoba is not allowed, with exceptions for essential services, or people returning home.
Roussin said Manitoba will slowly loosen public health orders, following the numbers as different restrictions are lifted.
“We’re gonna be relying on [Manitobans] to continue their physical distancing” - 7:30
Saskatchewan announced plans to re-open some services over the next two months, including fishing and boat launches May 15.
“I had a brief opportunity to review [Saskatchewan’s] plan, and it seems to take the shape of many of the plans that we’ve been working at,” he said.
“We’re going to review that more in detail, but it looks along the lines of the kinds of plan’s we’ve been looking at.”
Roussin continued to praise Manitobans for keeping up social distancing, but warned work must continue.
“We can see our efforts paying off in our low numbers, but we continue to detect the virus in our province,” he said.
“If we let up our measures too soon we can see propagation of that virus.”
Symptomatic people are encouraged to call Health Links - Info Santé to check their symptoms.
