The province’s chief medical officer of health is scheduled to hold a news conference in Edmonton on Monday afternoon to provide an update on the COVID-19 situation in Alberta and the public health response to the pandemic.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw is expected to address the media at 3:30 p.m. local time. A livestream of her news conference can be viewed on this page once it begins.
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Alberta records 1st ‘likely’ case of in-school transmission of COVID-19
As of Friday afternoon, Alberta had 1,424 active cases of COVID-19, with 44 of those people in hospital and seven in intensive care.
Hinshaw is expected to announce how many new COVID-19 cases the province recorded over the weekend and also to update the status of various coronavirus outbreaks in Alberta.
Dr. Hinshaw asks media to seek balance while reporting on COVID-19 cases in schools
On Monday, the University of Alberta issued a statement to say it was suspending all varsity athletics activities for 14 days after five people at the men’s residence of St. Joseph’s College tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
READ MORE: 5 people test positive for coronavirus at University of Alberta residence
A day earlier, Alberta Health Services confirmed it had declared a COVID-19 outbreak on three units at the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary. The outbreak was declared after nine patients and two staff members tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
As of Friday, the Edmonton zone led the province in COVID-19 cases with 711.
Last week, Hinshaw announced the province would be shifting priorities for asymptomatic coronavirus testing in an effort to reduce wait times.
READ MORE: Alberta shifting away from wide asymptomatic testing
She said testing was no longer recommended for people with no symptoms or no suspected exposure to the virus.
However, Hinshaw noted that voluntary asymptomatic tests would continue to be offered for priority groups.
Watch below: Calgary psychologist Dr. Brent Macdonald joins Global News Morning Calgary live via Skype to discuss different ways students, parents and teachers can cope with COVID-19 during the first semester of school.
