COVID-19 Weekly Epi Report

March 4, 2022

3 minutes read

Test Positive for COVID-19 – Treatments Available

Whether you receive a positive rapid antigen test result at home or through a PCR test, remember that you may be eligible to receive one of the treatment options available in Saskatchewan. Antiviral medications or monoclonal antibodies may be used in early treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 illness in certain vaccinated or unvaccinated patients who are at risk for progression to severe illness.

If you test positive and believe you may meet the criteria for COVID-19 treatment, call HealthLine 811. You will receive additional screening and be referred appropriately.

Paxlovid Antiviral Medication Eligibility

Paxlovid is an antiviral medication that helps prevent the COVID-19 virus from spreading in your body, consisting of tablets taken every 12 hours for five days. Treatment must start within five days of symptom onset. The decision to prescribe Paxlovid will be made by the treating clinician, based on criteria established by the product monograph and the published clinical guidance.

Paxlovid is only recommended for adults over 18 who:

test positive (PCR or rapid test) with mild or moderate COVID-19 symptoms;
are within five days of developing symptoms;
do not have any medical conditions that would make treatment inappropriate;
are not taking any medications that may cause potential drug interactions; and
meet one of the following criteria: are immunocompromised, regardless of vaccine status; are age 55 and older, and not fully vaccinated; or have a medical condition that puts them at high risk, and are not fully vaccinated.

Monoclonal Antibody Treatment Eligibility

Monoclonal antibody treatment (sotrovimab) is a one-time treatment, delivered intravenously that helps your body fight a COVID-19 infection to prevent serious illness. Treatment must start within seven days of symptom onset. The decision to prescribe monoclonal antibodies will be made by the treating clinician, based on criteria established by the product monograph and the published clinical guidance.

Monoclonal antibody treatment is recommended for COVID-19 patients who meet the following criteria:

test positive (PCR or rapid test) with mild or moderate COVID-19 symptoms;
are within seven days of developing symptoms;
do not have any medical conditions that would make treatment inappropriate; and
meet one of the following criteria: are immunocompromised, regardless of vaccine status; are age 55 and older, and not fully vaccinated; or have a medical condition that puts them at high risk, and are not fully vaccinated.

More information on the treatment options is available at saskatchewan.ca/covid-19.

Remember that treatment for COVID-19 is not a substitute for vaccination. The best measure to prevent COVID-19 transmission and illness is to be fully vaccinated. Find a vaccination clinic near you.

Weekly COVID-19 Epi Report

Issued Thursdays, the Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 integrated epidemiology (epi) report utilizes multiple data sources and includes laboratory-confirmed cases, deaths, tests, vaccination information provincially and by zones, as well as hospital and ICU census trends and distribution of rapid antigen tests. The epi report this week looks at data from Sunday, February 20 to Saturday, February 26, 2022. The hospitalization data is a comparison from Wednesday, February 23 to noon March 2, 2022.

The integrated epi report can be found online at saskatchewan.ca/COVID-19-cases.

Summary for the week of February 20-26, 2022

7,833 laboratory tests were performed in Saskatchewan, reflecting 6.5 tests performed per 1,000 population.
The number of tests was about 86 per cent of the number of tests in the previous week (9,142).
Just over one in eight of laboratory tests were positive (weekly test positivity of 13.6 per cent).
Test positivity was slightly lower than test positivity in the previous week (14.4 per cent).
1,102 new cases were confirmed reflecting about 0.9 laboratory-confirmed cases per 1,000 population.
The number of new laboratory-confirmed cases was over three-quarters of the number of new cases in the previous week (1,407).
There were 506 new lineage results reported this week. Of the 506 variants of concern identified by whole genome sequencing, 100 per cent were Omicron.
Based on data recorded in Panorama, there were 44 newly reported COVID-19 deaths, which is 19 per cent higher than the number reported in the previous week (37).
There were 39.5 COVID-like illness patients per 1,000 emergency department visits which is similar to the average weekly rate in the previous six weeks (44 per week/1,000 visits).
Eleven (11) confirmed COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care and care home settings were reported this week.
As of February 26, of the population five years and older, 85.5 per cent received at least one dose of a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine and 80.3 per cent completed a series.
Among the population 18 years and older, 50.7 per cent had received at least one booster vaccination.
As of the week of February 28, there have been 62 Paxlovid prescriptions provided and 216 monoclonal antibody infusion treatments administered.
More than 18.3 million rapid anitigen test kits have been distributed in the province. They are easily accessible at 630 locations around the province.