Coronavirus (COVID-19) and Indigenous communities: Confirmed cases of COVID-19

Cases in First Nations on reserve

On First Nations reserves, as of February 23 Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is aware of:

• 84,386 confirmed positive COVID-19
• 3,402 active cases
• 2,961 hospitalizations
• 80,332 recovered cases
• 652 deaths

Cases by region

Case numbers by region:

• British Columbia: 8,239
• Alberta: 18,780
• Saskatchewan: 15,639
• Manitoba: 21,158
• Ontario: 11,059
• Quebec: 7,350
• Atlantic: 2,161

Weekly comparative data on the number of active cases

For the week of February 17 to 23, 2022, average daily reported active case counts dropped 13.6% compared to the daily average the week before.

This compares to a:

• 9.5% decrease in average daily cases reported the week of February 10 to 16 from the week prior
• 13.2% decrease in average daily cases reported the week of February 3 to 9 from the week prior

Number of cases by variants

Since the beginning of the pandemic, ISC is of 25,070 COVID-19 confirmed cases due to variants of concern in First Nations communities, with the following breakdown by type:

• 3,145 alpha
• 16 beta
• 165 gamma
• 8,327 delta
• 2,205 indeterminate with variant of concern traits
• 11,212 omicron

6,430 omicron cases are in First Nations communities in Eastern Canada and 4,782 cases are in First Nations communities in Western Canada. Omicron has been detected in a total of 128 First Nations communities.

For breakdowns for general population in Canada consult Variants of concern.

Provincial chief public health officers work with ISC’s regional medical officers and nurses to provide medical support as needed when a positive case is reported.

Comparison of the number of cases in Indigenous communities with the general population

As of February 15, 2022:

• the rate of reported active cases of COVID-19 in First Nations people living on-reserve was going down since mid-January 2021 and reached its lowest point during the first week of August at 84.2 cases per 100,000
• with the arrival of omicron variant, the rate had increased to its highest level at 1,596.7 per 100,000 during the second week of January 2022. Since then, the rate of reported active cases has been going down and is currently 844.7 per 100,000 or 2.3 times the respective rate in the general Canadian population
• the COVID-19 case fatality rate among First Nations people living on a reserve is 71% of the case fatality rate in the general Canadian population
• 95% of First Nations people living on a reserve who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered

Related links

For more details on case numbers in First Nations communities, visit:

• Epidemiological summary of COVID-19 cases in First Nations communities

For the total number of confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 across Canada, visit:

• Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): Current situation

For the case notification process:

• COVID-19: reporting and case notification process