***Editor's note: The health department points out that due to changes in testing availability, case counts on its dashboard are an underestimate of the true number of individuals with COVID-19 in Waterloo Region. Local data is being provided on Fridays***
The weekly COVID-19 update for Waterloo Region has been released and two more related deaths are being confirmed.
"Today we are reporting two additional COVID-19 related deaths in our community," wrote Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, in an e-mail statement. "One individual was a male in his 80s. The other individual was a male in his 30s. I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the families of these individuals."
There have been 505 COVID-related deaths in the region since the onset of the pandemic.
The update showed that local COVID-related hospitalizations have remained stable with 41 admissions reported. ICU admissions declined slightly from last week, with that total down from three to two.
Active outbreaks declined by one overall with nine remaining in effect. You can find the complete list of outbreaks on the region's dashboard.
There were 185 new cases reported in the past week, the active caseload slipped to 266, and 229 more cases were deemed resolved. Keep in mind, case counts are underestimates because of testing restrictions.
