is week brought hopeful news about vaccinations, but also worrisome indicators
Health Canada approved a fourth vaccine. The federal government announced more doses than expected of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be delivered this month. The province laid out an accelerated inoculation plan that pledges anyone can get a dose by the start of summer. The city began vaccinating the 80-and-over crowd, starting with people living in some of the highest-risk communities.
But when it comes to other COVID-19 developments, it's been a worrying week.
Many coronavirus indicators — case counts, hospitalizations, wastewater measurements — are on the rise. Ottawa is on the edge of more-restrictive red zone, when the city's trying to move to the less-stringent yellow.
Perhaps most concerning of all is the news that the number of COVID-19 cases involving variants has jumped substantially.
For weeks we've known there were 10 such cases confirmed in Ottawa. But this week, Medical Officer of Health Dr. Vera Etches revealed initial screening had identified an additional 73 cases involving more transmissible versions of the virus.