Everything you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Saturday, July 24

The latest COVID-19 numbers

• The province will not report COVID-19 data and vaccination numbersthis weekend.
• Alberta reported 173new casesof COVID-19 on Friday.There had previously been a discrepancy between the total ofnew COVID-19 cases and the increase in known active cases that was reported by the Alberta government.
• There havebeen two newdeaths. A total of2,322Albertans have died.
• There are84people being treated in hospital for COVID-19in Alberta. Of those,26are in intensive care units. While COVID-19 hospitalizations have continued to decline, the province is experiencing anuptick in daily case counts, active cases and positivity rate.
• The 173new cases were detected out of7,609 tests, with a positivity rate around 2.14per cent.
• There are now 799 active cases of COVID-19 across the province, an increase of 123 from the previous day.
• The rate at which COVID-19 cases spread from one person to the next is once again rising in the province. As of last week, Alberta's provincewide R-value was 0.84, with a confidence interval of 0.74 to 0.94. It was even higher in Edmonton, at 0.97 with a confidence interval pushing the city's R-value potentially over one.
• Public health officials havereportedthe first cases of the C.37 coronavirus variant in Alberta also known as the lambda variant. Both were travel-related.
• 230,039Albertansare considered to have recovered from COVID-19.

The latest on restrictions and reopenings:

• The U.S. land border will remain closed to non-essential travel until at least Aug.21, according to a renewal order issued by the Americangovernment Wednesday. In a notice pre-published in the U.S. Federal Register, the government says while vaccination rates have improved, opening the land border to non-essential travel still poses too high a risk.
• The Canadiangovernment announced Mondayit plans to let fully vaccinated tourists visit Canada again soon. Ottawa says starting Aug. 9 at 12:01 a.m. ETfully vaccinated U.S. citizens and permanent residents living in that country will be able to visit Canada without having to quarantine for two weeks.
• The government said it plans to allow fully vaccinated travellers from all other countries to enter Canada without quarantine on Sept. 7.
• Canadians and permanent residents who are fully vaccinatedwill need to show documents proving they received doses of vaccines approved in Canada at least 14 days prior to entering the country.
• Officials said travellers must electronically submit COVID-19-related information to the government'sArriveCANapp before arriving,meet the pre- and on-arrival test requirements, be asymptomaticand have a suitable quarantine plan.
• Alberta entered Stage 3 of its three-stage reopening plan onJuly 1, lifting all restrictions. The general indoor provincial mask mandate was lifted, but masking might still be required in limited settings or if certain communities continue it under local bylaws.
• The Alberta government announced on July 13that remaining restrictions in effect for continuing care facilities would be lifted in a two-stage process beginning as soon as operators were able to make any necessary changes.
• The first phase was toendremaining visitor restrictions,limits to dining and recreation activities, and additional screening for residents who go off-site. Outbreak protocols, single-site staffing and other measures were to remain in place until further notice.

(Note the latest daily count of new cases in the above chart will usually vary slightly from the net new cases Alberta Health announces each day. For more on why, click here.)

The latest on vaccines:

• Alberta hit a significant mark in the vaccination campaign Thursday75 per cent of residentsover the age of 12 have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while61.3 per cent have had twodoses.
• A total of 2,822,412 Albertans have received at least one dose ofvaccine, the ministry says.
• But Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw is not satisfied, as the figures mean there are still a quarter of eligible Albertans left who still have not received the vaccine.
• A poll released Wednesday by the Angus Reid Institute suggests that vaccine hesitancy is more common in Alberta than in the rest of the country. The survey found that one in five Albertans remain disinclined to get a shot twice the national average.
• According to the poll, in B.C. the hesitancy rate is 12 per cent, and in Ontario and Quebec it's just nine per cent.
• "We absolutely need to get a better push on vaccine uptake," said Craig Jenne, an associate professor at the University of Calgary in the department of microbiology, immunology and infectious diseases.
• Alberta reached a significant milestone in its COVID-19 immunizationcampaign on July 19 with more than fivemillion doses of vaccines administered.

• Dr. Deena Hinshawtweeted on July 21that the province's latest datareaffirms that vaccination provides excellentprotection against infection and variants.
• Hinshaw said one dose proves to be 57 per cent effective against the B.1.617 variant, and increases to 85 per centwith two doses. Against the B.1.1.7 variant, two doses prove to be 91 per cent effective.
• She also noted that 96 per cent of Albertans who have tested positive for the virus since Jan. 1 had nothad two doses of vaccine, and91 per cent of COVID-19 deaths and 95 per cent of hospital and intensive care unit admissions followed the same trend.
• AHS is offering no-appointment, first and second dose COVID-19 immunization clinics with Pfizer vaccine at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre and the Genesis Centre, from Wednesday, July 21, through Monday, July 26.
• Clinics are also running in Calgary at theSomali Cultural Centre, 3940 29 Street N.E. on July 24, and at theCrossroads Community Centre at 1803 14 Ave N.E. on July 29.
• North of Calgary, AHSwill also operate a clinic in the Crossfield Community Centre on July 27.
• Rapid flow COVID-19 immunization clinics at the Expo Centre in Edmonton and the Calgary Convention Centre will close by the end of July, Alberta Health Services said Wednesday.
• Alberta Health has partnered with a coalition of businesses to launch a mobile clinic that will administer first and second doses of the vaccine at remote work camps, rural communities and hard-to-reach populations.
• Immunizations start next week in the Banff and Kananaskis areasas the clinic begins its tour of the province.

See which regions are being hit hardest:

Here is thedetailed regional breakdownof active cases as reported by the province on Friday.

• Calgary zone:473.
• Edmonton zone:155.
• Central zone:39.
• South zone: 56.
• North zone: 75.
• Unknown: 1.

You can see active cases by local health area on the following interactive map. Scroll, zoom and click on the map for more information:

Here are the latest Alberta COVID-19 stories: