Everything you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Thursday, May 20

The latest on vaccines:

• 2,312,821vaccinedoses have beenadministered in Alberta as of May 19,includingPfizer-BioNTech, Modernaand AstraZeneca-Oxford.
• 365adverse events following immunization have been reported.
• The Alberta government saysmore than halfof Albertans eligible for the vaccine currentlythose age12 and older had been vaccinated with at least one dose as of Tuesday, May 18. Overall, including those who aren't yet eligible like younger children,43.4per cent of Alberta's population has received at least one dose.
• 335,482Albertansarefully immunized (twodoses) 7.5per cent of the population.
• Alberta Health Services says it is aware of individuals on social media claiming to have booked multiple falseCOVID-19 vaccination appointments in an attempt to prevent other Albertans from receiving their dose. AHS says it has shared this information with law enforcement and is working to ensure participating pharmacies are aware. A system is in place to prevent double bookings both online and through 811.AHS says it is monitoring no-showsto see whether false bookings are being made, but there hasn't beenany increase in no-shows.
• Dr. DeenaHinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, says people who got their first dose of vaccine outside of the province can get a second dose in Alberta with proof of vaccination, which will be entered into their health records.
• Canadians looking to drive across the border to the United States for the sole purpose of getting a COVID-19 vaccine are not exempt from mandatory quarantine upon their return. In a statement late Wednesday, the Public Health Agency of Canada saidquarantine exemptions nowin place are not intended for those travelling abroad to get vaccinated against the coronavirus disease. Earlier this week, Albertans who attended aMontana vaccination clinicwere told they were exempted from having to quarantine for 14 days.

The latest on restrictions:

• There are changes to the quarantine period in Alberta. Effective Thursday, close contacts of a positive COVID-19 case who are fully vaccinated, with two doses at least two weeks prior, no longer need to quarantine unless they begin to experience symptoms. Close contacts with one dose must isolate for 10 days instead of 14.
• Almost all Alberta K-12 students are to return to classrooms next week with the exception of students in theRegional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, which includes Fort McMurray, whowill stay home one more week.
• George McGuigan, superintendent of the Fort McMurray Catholic Schools, said the extra week gives hiscommunity a reprieve amid the high number of COVID-19 cases.
• Several organizations that run summer camps for kids in southern Alberta includingYMCA'sCamp Chief Hector, Easter Seals Camp Horizon, andKids Cancer Care's Camp Kindle are cancelling this year's overnight offerings as the province continues to grapple with the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The City of Calgary says it won't create a voter list for candidates in a decisionthat appears aimed at protecting the privacy of voters. The move comes after reports last week that amayoral candidate,Kevin J. Johnston,was attempting to track down addresses of Alberta Health Services employees andthreatening to show up at their homesarmed.
• Johnston, who is running in this fall's municipal election, was allegedly in violation of a court order when he attended illegal gatheringsSaturday, where people were violating public health laws to protest COVID-19-related restrictions.
• In another arrest of another higher profile person accused of repeatedly and flagrantly violating public health laws, Pastor Tim Stephens was arrested for organizing a church service in violation of public health rulesat Fairview Baptist Church in Calgary.
• And Ty and Gail Northcott,organizers of a rodeo earlier this month near Bowden, Alta., to protest provincial COVID-19 restrictions, pleaded not guilty on Monday to violating Alberta's Public Health Act by holding the event. They have vowed to hold more.
• AHS says one positive case of COVID-19 has now been directly linked to the rodeo.

• The government introduced a bundle of tougher public-health restrictions again on May 4, to slow the spread of COVID-19 measures Kenney said were needed to keep the health-care system from being overwhelmed.
• The new public health measures apply to all parts of Alberta exceptthose with fewer than 50 cases per 100,000 people.
• The full list of current restrictions is available on the province's website.

Watch | Alberta education minister, Opposition address plan to return students to classrooms:

Alberta students set to head back to in-school classes as COVID cases drop

4 years ago

Duration 2:24

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw say its safe for students to head back to the classroom, but NDP education critic Sarah Hoffman says the province is just setting students up for another yo-yo cycle.

The latest COVID-19 numbers:

• Alberta reported 812new COVID-19 caseson Thursday and fourmore deaths.
• There were17,675active cases.Alberta continues to have the highest active-case rate in other words, active cases per100,000 people of all provinces and territories in Canada.
• The rate of active cases was 398per 100,000 people in Alberta.
• The test positivity rate was 9.3per cent.
• There were665people in hospital with COVID-19, including 177people in intensive care.
• There have now been2,162COVIDdeaths.
• 202,442Albertans have recovered from COVID-19.
• The latestR-valuereported for the province was 0.84,meaning the virus is spreading to less than one person for each confirmed case.
• Three of Calgary's four adult hospitals are once again dealing with a number of COVID-19 outbreaks.Theoutbreaks are driven by the variant first discovered in the U.K.Rockyview General Hospital has three impacted units including four patients and one healthcare worker. Anoutbreak at Peter Lougheed Centre involves one patient. And Foothills Medical Centrehas two units on outbreak including four patients.
• Shoppers Drug Mart says it is now offering rapid antigen COVID-19 tests for asymptomatic people at all its pharmacies in Ontario and Alberta. The tests have to be purchased.

(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.)

See which regions are being hit hardest:

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

• Calgary zone:8,132 active cases, down from 8,683 active cases reported on Wednesday(81,511recovered).
• Edmonton zone:4,195 down from4,446(70,202recovered).
• North zone:2,657down from2,780 (22,180recovered).
• South zone:871down from 925(10,976recovered).
• Central zone:1,814down from 1,978(17,555recovered).
• Unknown:24, upfrom19(18recovered).

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

Find out which neighbourhoods or communities have the most cases, how hard people of different ages have been hit, the ages of people in hospital, how Alberta compares to other provinces and more in: Here are the latest COVID-19 statistics for Alberta and what they mean.

Here are the latest Alberta COVID-19 stories:

How Alberta compares to other provinces and territories: