The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada on Dec. 21, 2020

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The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (All times Eastern):11:40 a.m.Nova Scotia is reporting two new cases of COVID-19, while its number of active cases has fallen to 38.Health officials say one new case is in the Halifax area and the other is in the western health zone.Both cases are close contacts of previously reported cases.Nova Scotia Health Authority's labs completed 1,389 tests on Sunday.No one is currently in hospital.\---11:05 a.m.COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Ontario and the province's ability to control the spread of the virus is “precarious.”Those are the findings from new projections released today that conclude "hard" lockdowns lasting four to six weeks could cut daily case counts to less than 1,000.The new projections show that under all scenarios the province will see 300 intensive-care unit beds filled within 10 days — double the 150-bed threshold where surgeries must be cancelled.Under a worst-case-scenario, ICU occupancy could hit 1,500 beds by mid-January. The data also shows that deaths due to COVID-19 will continue to increase, especially in long-term care where there have been 633 resident deaths since Sept. 1, and 100 over the past week.\---11 a.m.Quebec is reporting a third straight day of more than 2,000 COVID-19 infections as well as a sharp rise in hospitalizations.Health officials reported 2,108 new cases and 30 deaths linked to the novel coronavirus, two of which occurred in the past 24 hours.The province says hospitalizations increased by 38, to 1,048, and 146 people were in intensive care, the same number as the prior day.Quebec administered 115 doses of COVID-19 vaccine Sunday for a total of 4,831 since the province’s vaccination campaign began last week.\---10:40 a.m.There are 2,123 new cases of COVID-19 in Ontario today and 17 more deaths related to the virus.Health Minister Christine Elliott says there are 611 new cases in Toronto, 480 in Peel Region, and 192 in York Region.Hamilton is joining those regions, along with Windsor-Essex, in the province's "grey" lockdown zone today. It has 36 new cases.\---9:55 a.m.New measures meant to prevent any possible surge of COVID-19 over the holiday period have entered into effect across Nova Scotia.Starting today and until Jan. 10, in-person dining at restaurants in the Halifax area will remain closed, while restaurants and licensed establishments in the rest of the province will have to stop service by 10 p.m. and close by 11 p.m.Indoor gatherings provincewide are capped at 10 people and retail stores across Nova Scotia are required to limit the number of shoppers to 25 per cent of legal capacity.Long-term care residents are allowed two designated caregivers while seniors facilities can permit limited visits by family members.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2020.The Canadian Press

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