Dr. Réka Gustafson, B.C.’s deputy provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued the following joint statement regarding updates on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) response in British Columbia:

“Today, we are reporting on three 24-hour periods. From Oct. 30 to 31, we had 352 new cases. From Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, we had 389 new cases and in the last 24 hours, we have had a further 379 new cases.

“This represents a total of 1,120 new cases, including seven epi-linked cases, for a total of 15,501 cases in British Columbia.

“There are 2,945 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, 6,448 people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases and 12,207 people who tested positive have recovered.

“Currently, 90 individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, 19 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation.

“Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 4,898 cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 9,049 in the Fraser Health region, 265 in the Island Health region, 777 in the Interior Health region, 422 in the Northern Health region and 90 cases of people who reside outside of Canada.

“There have been six new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 269 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There have been three new health-care facility outbreaks at Good Samaritan Delta View Care Centre, Hamilton Village Care Centre and Rotary Manor Dawson Creek. The outbreak at Baillie House has been declared over. In total, 26 long-term care or assisted-living facilities and two acute-care facilities have active outbreaks.

“There have been no new community outbreaks and the outbreak at J&L Beef has been declared over. There continue to be exposure events around the province. Public alerts and notifications are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s (BCCDC) website and on all health authorities’ websites.

“We have learned much about COVID-19 – what living with the virus looks like and what we need to do to keep ourselves and those around us safe.

“Testing to identify new cases, contact tracing to contain further transmission and using our layers of protection are the cornerstones of our response and the tools we will continue to use as we navigate this pandemic.

“Our goal is to continue to minimize severe illness and death, balanced with keeping as much as possible open and active in our communities. But to achieve this careful balance, we all need to do our part.

“We are going to see fluctuations and surges in some communities. And when we do, increased effort and stepped up focus will be applied, using all of the public health measures we have available to us.

“We have seen that the vast majority of people in B.C. are spending time with people outside of their household in safe and responsible ways. We thank the many businesses and organizations who are allowing that to take place with robust COVID-19 safety plans in place.

“As we look ahead, it is important for all of us to continue to pay attention to the COVID-19 transmission in our community. If there is transmission in your social circle or workplace, take the recommendations of public health contact tracing teams to heart and use all of the protective measures available to us.

“For our communities and for each of us, staying well means staying safe. It means always following the COVID-19 safety basics and when spending time with others, always taking precautions to keep ourselves and others safe.”

Learn More:

BCCDC’s safer celebrations guidance: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/social-interactions/safer-celebrations

To learn more about the Oct. 5 modelling presentation, visit:
https://news.gov.bc.ca/files/COVID19_Going_Forward_Oct_2020.pdf

To find the provincial health officer’s orders, visit:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/about-bc-s-health-care-system/office-of-the-provincial-health-officer/current-health-topics/covid-19-novel-coronavirus

To see a map of COVID-19 cases by local health area visit:
http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/data

If you are experiencing symptoms, find a collection centre near you to get tested: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/testing

For mental health and anxiety support, visit: www.bouncebackbc.ca
Or: www.anxietycanada.com

For a listing of the community exposure events, go to:

BCCDC (flights, work sites, etc.): http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/public-exposures
Fraser Health: fraserhealth.ca/covid19exposure
Interior Health: https://news.interiorhealth.ca/news/public-exposures/
Island Health: https://www.islandhealth.ca/learn-about-health/covid-19/outbreaks-and-exposures
Northern Health: https://www.northernhealth.ca/health-topics/outbreaks-and-exposures
Vancouver Coastal: http://www.vch.ca/covid-19/public-exposures

For the latest medical updates, including case counts, prevention, risks and testing, visit: http://www.bccdc.ca/ or follow @CDCofBC on Twitter.

For non-health related information, including financial, child care and education supports, travel, transportation and essential service information, visit: www.gov.bc.ca/covid19
Or call 1 888 COVID19 (1 888 268-4319) between 7:30 a.m. and 8 p.m. (Pacific time), seven days a week.

For the latest videos and livestreaming of COVID-19 media availabilities, visit:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BCProvincialGovernment/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BCGovNews 
YouTube: www.youtube.com/ProvinceofBC

Two backgrounders follow.