Check against delivery.

Thank you, Tom, and good afternoon everyone.

Before I begin, I would like to recognize the team who prepared the Opioid dashboard and to comment on the most recent data released today.

Between July and October alone, 449 Albertans died from apparent unintentional opioid poisoning. My heart goes out to all who have lost a loved one.

It is a sad reminder that while COVID-19 is a serious and deadly pandemic, it is not the only public health crisis impacting our families and communities. I ask Albertans to show compassion and support to those dealing with substance use issues, their family and friends, and to all those grieving the loss of a loved one.

These are difficult times for many.

With respect to COVID-19, over the last 24 hours, we have identified 1,413 new cases in Alberta, and completed about 19,500 tests.  

This means our positivity rate stands at about 7.4%.

There are currently 759 people in hospital, including 141 who have been admitted to the ICU.

Sadly, 25 new deaths have been reported to us in the last 24 hours.

My thoughts are with everyone mourning a loved one right now from any cause.

I know the current restrictions impact how you can grieve, and I urge you to seek support in whatever ways are available to you.  COVID-19 impacts us all.

There are currently active alerts or outbreaks in 443 schools, or about 19 per cent of schools in the province.

Currently these schools have a combined total of 1,971 cases.

I know this has been yet another tough week for many Albertans. A difficult week in a difficult year.

However, we are starting to see some early positive signs in our province.

On Tuesday of this week, there were 1,286 new cases of COVID-19 identified. That was the lowest daily total since Nov. 26.

As of today, there are 19,607 active cases in the province. That is the lowest it has been since December 5 – two weeks ago.

Our provincial positivity rate fluctuates on any given day, but is on a downward trend from the high of 10.97 per cent on Dec. 3.

Now, I want to be clear: our fight is far from over.

We expect that hospitalizations and ICU admissions will continue to rise in the coming weeks, as these are a lagging indicators – meaning that it takes several weeks before changes in our case counts are seen in the demands felt in our acute care system.

Our health system continues to feel the strain, which will increase in the days ahead. But what these numbers show us is that, together, we have the power to protect our communities and to change our future.

We must continue to do everything possible to protect the care system that we all rely on.

I know that a great many health care workers are working incredibly hard these days, and will be working all through the holidays. I am grateful to all of them, and to all frontline workers. It is for them that we must maintain our progress.

In the past, we have seen COVID-19 cases level or dip before, only to rise again.

The positive indicators we are seeing can be reversed in a matter of days if we all don’t keep doing our part.

It is up to us to continue this momentum.

With the weekend upon us, I’m asking all Albertans to remain vigilant in following the restrictions in place.

I know many people are still busy preparing for the holidays and shopping for groceries and gifts, but we all need to do so in the safest manner possible.

Do not try to crowd into malls or stores.

If you’re able to, take advantage of curbside pick-up, or online telephone ordering.

If you must go shopping in-person, only go shopping with those in your household, and try to go at a less busy time.

While you’re out, be sure to maintain physical distance from others.

And if you arrive at a store or mall and see it’s crowded, leave and try again later or make other arrangements.

As always, I am asking Albertans to abide by not only the rules in place, but to embrace the spirit of them.

We need to reduce in-person interactions as much possible.

Anything you can do – or not do – this weekend that helps limit your exposure, please take that step. Bend the curve, not the rules.

The positive signs that we are seeing show us the power of our collective action.

If each of us follows the restrictions in place, we can keep reducing the spread. But the reverse of that is true, too.

If we let our guard down or gather together in the next few days, we will see cases rise.

Thank you to everyone doing your part to make sure that this does not happen.

This has been another hard week, but there are a lot of reasons for hope.

Let’s all keep working together and protecting each other.

Thank you and I’m happy to take questions.