COVID-19

There are 147 new COVID-19 cases being announced on Friday morning.

Friday's new COVID-19 cases include 90 people who are not vaccinated, 52 people who are fully vaccinated, and five people who are fully vaccinated.

There are now 68,308 identified COVID-19 cases in Manitoba.

New cases by health region include:

A popular Bible app is sharing its most popular Bible verse of the year as the pandemic continues to drive people to the Bible

Matthew 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all things will be added to you" was the most popular verse in 2021. YouVersion says it was bookmarked, highlighted, and shared the most.

Starting on Monday, December 13 at 8 a.m., Ontarians aged 50 and over will be eligible to schedule their COVID-19 booster dose appointment, if it's been approximately six months (168 days) since their second dose.

Effective immediately individuals receiving dialysis (hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis) are eligible to receive a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine if it has been 56 days since their second dose.

A community group is asking manitobans to send virtual hugs to seniors this Christmas season.

"In light of COVID we had to make some adjustments to what we would like to do," says Jan Legeros, the Executive Director of the Long Term & Continuing Care Association of Manitoba (LTCAM). "There's a big difference in what we would like to do and what we can do safely."

Senior citizens in personal care homes have had a rough time during the pandemic as they have been kept from seeing loved ones. This of course was and is to keep the spread of COVID-19 at bay. 

The active case count remains at 16 as the Northwestern Health Unit reports two new cases of COVID-19 in the region.

There is a new case in each of the Kenora and Dryden/Red Lake regions.

Provincewide, 959 new cases of COVID-19 were reported on Thursday.

Follow up with the person involved and their contacts have started according to protocol. Anyone who is identified as a contact for these cases will be contacted directly.

The Omicron variant has prompted the province to expand the availability of third COVID vaccine doses for all Albertans 18 and over.

Health minister Jason Copping says vaccinations have proven to be a powerful weapon against COVID, but their effectiveness can decrease over time.

"People will be eligible when six months have passed from their second dose, and the rollout will move forward in stages," said Copping.

"The next stage will be Albertans 60 and older who will be eligible for third doses next Monday, Dec. 6.

Canada’s first two cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant of concern were confirmed Sunday in Ottawa. The variant – which may be more transmissible – was first identified in South Africa, where it coincided with a recent spike in COVID-19 cases, but it’s unclear where it first emerged. Here’s what we know about it so far:

WHAT IS OMICRON?

Manitoba's premier says Indigenous partnerships are fundamental to Manitoba's economic recovery.

In her first State of the Province address, Premier Heather Stefanson addressed roughly 1,200 business people attending the event hosted by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce at the RBC Convention Centre.

Her speech highlighted her government's hopes for Manitoba's post-pandemic recovery.

Manitoba's five-day test positivity rate continues to hover above five per cent.

There are 172 new COVID-19 cases in Manitoba as of Thursday morning. Out of the new cases, 89 people are not vaccinated, 74 people are fully vaccinated, and nine people are partially vaccinated. 

New cases by health region include:

Food Banks across Canada are seeing record-high numbers of residents in need of help this holiday season, and are reporting the highest rate of food bank use since the 2008 recession.

Food Banks of Canada issued their 2021 Hunger Count report that showed COVID-19 caused a 20 per cent increase from the same count from 2019. Over 1.3 million visits were made to food banks across Canada in 2021.