Key COVID-19 numbers in the Ottawa area today

• Ottawa's wastewater average is rising quickly.
• City's hospitalizations are stable, and number ofhealth-care outbreaks unchanged.
• COVID-19 hospitalizations rise outside of Ottawa.
• The EOHU reports another COVID death.

Today's Ottawa update

The average level of coronavirus in Ottawa'swastewaterhas risen even higherfrom the significant increase noted by researchers earlier this week. It's atlevels similar to the early days of both January and February 2022.

The wastewater level is now more than six times higher than it was before the Omicron surge and higher than recorded during the surge in early winter 2021 when COVID-19 vaccine eligibility was limited.

March 22 had the highest daily recording since the end of January 2022. One of the lead researchers notes that it is rising faster than in other surges.

Nine Ottawa residents are in local hospitals being treated forCOVID-19, according to Thursday's OPHupdate, with one in an ICU.

These numbers have been stablethis month.

Hospital numbersdonot includepeople who came to hospital for other reasons and then tested positive for COVID-19. They also don't cover people with lingering COVID-19problems, or patients transferredfrom other health units.

OPH shares those numbers a few times per week. They are also stable.

Testing strategies have changedunderthe contagiousOmicron variant, meaning many people with COVID-19aren't reflected inthe case count.

Officials have said they expect numbers to trend up as rules loosen. What iskey is whether the increases become concerning. OPH repeated that message in a Thursday statement.

On Thursday, OPH reported 164moreCOVID-19 casesand no more deaths.

The rolling weekly incidence rate of newly confirmedCOVID-19 cases, expressed per 100,000 residents, isaround 60.

The health unit also reported 17 health-care outbreaks, which is unchanged Thursday afterrising for about a week. The province's 2022testing strategy means it doesn't track other types of outbreaks.

The averagepositivity rate for those who received PCR tests outside long-term care homes is around 18per cent. The average positivity in homes isaround threeper cent. The next testing update is expected Friday.

As of Monday's weekly update, 92 per cent of eligible Ottawa residents have at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, 88 per cent have at least two, and 61 per cent of residents age 12 and up have at least three.

Across the region

Communities outside of Ottawa haveabout 50COVID-19 hospitalizations, which has been slowly rising, while 14of themrequireintensive care.

Neither of those numbersinclude Hastings Prince EdwardPublic Health.

Wastewater trends arestableacross Leeds, Grenville and Lanark counties. Theyvary across the Kingston area.

Renfrew County reported 12 local COVID hospitalizations in its weekly update, up slightlyfrom the previous week.

After dropping for more than four weeks, western Quebec COVIDhospitalizations have rebounded in the last week. Its health authority reports 10 patients, including two in the ICU.

Hospitalizations in the Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU) doubled from three to six in Thursday's update. The region also reported its 211th COVID death.

The region's Medical Officer of Health Dr. Paul Roumeliotis told reporters Wednesday its recenttrends have generally beenlow and stable. It has reported more deaths this wave than any other because of the sheer number of people infected, he said.

WATCH | The EOHU update: