The Northwest Territories government reported that a fourteenth person had passed away from Covid-19 on Friday, as the number of active cases dropped by 331.
There are now 1,034 active cases across the territory with 496 in the Yellowknife region, 143 in the Tłı̨chǫ region, 140 in the Beaufort Delta, 93 in the Dehcho, 76 in the Hay River area and 42 in Fort Smith.
Chief public health officer Dr Kami Kandola said the “significant decrease” in reported cases is due to changes in isolation requirements. People who are fully vaccinated are considered resolved seven days after a positive test result, diagnosis or onset of symptoms as their likelihood of spreading Covid-19 is considered small.
Kandola said her office will begin sharing Covid-19 modelling predictions next week, which forecast that the NWT will see more than 100 new daily infections until mid-February. She said, however, that real data indicates the peak of the current Omicron wave may have already passed in mid-January.
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Also on Friday, Kandola announced changes to how active cases will be reported in the territory.
Next week, the NWT will begin reporting the number of cases by community on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays rather than once a week. Kandola said there may be fluctuations in daily case counts as presumptive positive cases will be reported as active infections, which will then be removed if testing determines the individual is negative for Covid-19.
Regional case numbers will continue to be updated every weekday.
