The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit confirmed two new novel coronavirus cases in the region Friday, bringing the local total number of cases to 718, including 37 deaths.
The new cases are in Bracebridge and New Tecumseth, Ont., involving men between 18 and 34 in age. The source of both of their infections is still under investigation.
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Of the 718 coronavirus cases in Simcoe County and Muskoka, 92 per cent — or 660 people — have recovered, while two people remain in hospital.
Of all the region’s cases, 20 per cent have been related to local institutional outbreaks.
There have been 19 COVID-19 outbreaks in Simcoe County and Muskoka — 11 at long-term care facilities, four at retirement homes, three at workplaces and one at a group home.
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Two of those outbreaks are active — at the Pines Long-Term Care Home in Bracebridge and at Mill Creek Care Centre in Barrie.
According to the health unit, the rate of coronavirus infections in Simcoe County and Muskoka is highest among those who live in areas with greater ethnic diversity as measured by the Ontario Marginalization Index.
On Friday, Ontario reported 148 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the provincial total to 42,834, including 2,811 deaths.
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