Canadians under the age of 12 now account for the highest number of new COVID-19 infections, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) says.
Speaking at a press conference in Ottawa on Friday, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said those under 12 currently represent over 20 per cent of daily cases, despite only representing 12 per cent of the country鈥檚 population.
Tam said this overrepresentation is 鈥渘ot unexpected,鈥 though, given the 鈥渉igh level of vaccination in other age groups.鈥
According to PHAC, there are approximately 4.3 million children under 12 who are not vaccinated.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved the use of Pfizer鈥檚 COVID-19 vaccine for children aged five to 11. Inoculations in the U.S. began this week.
While Canada has ordered 2.9 million doses of Pfizer鈥檚 vaccine for children, it is still pending approval from regulators.
Tam confirmed Health Canada鈥檚 review of the vaccine remains ongoing, adding that it will likely be 鈥渨eeks, not months鈥 before the agency comes to a decision.
Tam said while there have been some outbreaks in schools and daycares, they have generally been small in size.
In general, she said younger children experience milder COVID-19 infections than adults, but there are rare instances of more severe illness.
COVID-19-related deaths in young children happen rarely, Tam continued, adding that over the course of the pandemic there have been fewer than 20 fatalities among those under 19.
Over the past month, Canada has made 鈥済ood progress鈥 in slowing the growth of COVID-19 across Canada, Tam told the press conference.
However, according to the most recent epidemic modelling released by PHAC on Friday, the rate of decline has 鈥渟lowed somewhat.鈥
Tam said while she is cautiously optimistic, the country could see some 鈥渂umps鈥 in the trajectory of the pandemic in the months ahead, and noted that severe illness trends are 鈥渟till elevated.鈥
Tam said since the last modelling released in early October, daily average case counts across the country have continued to decrease.
Over the past week an average of 2,230 cases were being reported daily, she said.
鈥淭his means we are about halfway down from the peak of the fourth wave, when over 4,400 cases were being reported daily,鈥 Tam continued.
The PHAC modelling suggests that since the agency鈥檚 last update in October, vaccination efforts and public health measures have helped to bring the fourth wave of the pandemic under control along the reduced transmission trajectory previously forecast.
The modelling now suggests if the country continues along the path it is on now, and maintains current levels of transmission, Canadians could expect to see around 1,000 new COVID-19 cases daily by early December.
However, Tam cautioned that it鈥檚 鈥渟till too soon to fully ease public health measures.鈥
鈥淚f we were to do so we could expect to see a rapid rise in cases,鈥 she explained. 鈥淣ow is not the time to let our guard down. We may still be in for a challenging winter and maintaining a cautious approach can help keep us safer as we move indoors for the arrival of colder weather.鈥
According to the latest data from PHAC, more than 58.9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered across Canada since vaccination began in mid-December.
The PHAC data suggests that as of 9 p.m. EDT on Thursday, 58,964,890 doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered in Canada.
This means over 89 per cent of the eligible population 鈥 those 12 and older 鈥 have received at least one shot, while more than 84 per cent of eligible Canadians are fully vaccinated.
But, Tam said there are still more than 5.5 million Canadians who could receive a vaccine, but who have not yet been fully vaccinated.
PHAC data shows 4 million people have not yet received a single dose, while 1.5 million people are only partially vaccinated.
Canada may still be in for a 鈥渂umpy ride鈥 through the rest of fall and into the winter, Tam cautioned.
鈥淭his virus has proven time and time again that this virus could go through evolutions,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 possible that we could get different variants 鈥 and we have to monitor that.鈥
Asked if the pandemic could be over by the end of winter in Canada, PHAC Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Howard Njoo, said it鈥檚 鈥渢oo early to say,鈥 adding that there are several factors which could impact the pandemic鈥檚 trajectory.
鈥淚 think we need to be cautious,鈥 he said in French.
The PHAC is urging Canadians to 鈥渓ayer protections鈥 against respiratory infections as the country heads into winter.
This includes getting COVID-19 vaccines, flu shots and other routine vaccines, continuing to wear face masks, improve indoor ventilation and avoid crowds.
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