Health
Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued the following joint statement regarding updates on the COVID-19 response in British Columbia:
“Today, we are reporting 395 new cases, including 12 epi-linked cases, for a total of 78,673 cases in British Columbia.
“There are 4,489 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, with 7,931 people under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases. A further 72,781 people who tested positive have recovered.
“Of the active cases, 228 individuals are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 62 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.
“Since we last reported, we have had 86 new cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 207 new cases in the Fraser Health region, 37 in the Island Health region, 24 in the Interior Health region, 41 in the Northern Health region and no new cases of people who reside outside of Canada.
“There have been 16 new confirmed COVID-19 cases that are variants of concern in our province, for a total of 116 cases. Of the total cases, nine cases are active and the remaining people have recovered.
“To date, 239,883 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in B.C., 68,157 of which are second doses. Immunization data is available on the COVID-19 dashboard at: www.bccdc.ca
“There have been 10 new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 1,348 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost loved ones to COVID-19.
“There has been one new health-care facility outbreak at the Revera Sunwood Retirement Community. The outbreak at the Burnaby Hospital (Fraser Health) is now over.
“The vaccines we have available today are doing their job. Their effectiveness has been proven by the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) research released last week. Throughout Canada, we are working to use every available vial to safely get vaccine into arms as quickly as possible.
“We are encouraged by the enthusiasm and ask for patience with us to ensure we are getting it right.
“Throughout the province, we are paying special attention to the variants of concern to better understand transmission patterns. The evidence has shown we need to continue doing what we have been doing and the precautions we are already taking are equally as effective with these variants.
“We are all looking ahead to the point where we can safely spend time with our family and friends, when we can travel and resume the things that have been put on hold.
“Yesterday was Pink Shirt day. We spoke about the need for kindness and compassion. We all need to keep this top of mind in the weeks ahead, because with fatigue can come frustration.
“We are confident our collective efforts will slow the spread of COVID-19. However, it is our kindness and compassion that will see us through this pandemic and into brighter days ahead.”
Learn More:
To share your feedback in the Personal Impacts of COVID-19 survey, visit: https://www.bcchr.ca/POP/our-research/pics
Mental health support:
Mental health and anxiety support: www.bouncebackbc.ca
Or: www.anxietycanada.com
Or: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/about-covid-19/mental-well-being-during-covid-19
Or: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/managing-your-health/mental-health-substance-use/virtual-supports-covid-19
Provincial health officer orders and guidance:
Guidance on new restrictions: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/covid-19-provincial-support/restrictions
Vaccine and outbreak info:
For vaccine information, visit the BCCDC dashboard: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/data Or: www.bccdc.ca
For data regarding ongoing outbreaks in long-term care, assisted-living and independent-living facilities in B.C., visit: http://www.bccdc.ca/health-info/diseases-conditions/covid-19/data#outbreak
The latest updates, guidance and information on COVID-19, and where to get tested:
The latest medical updates, including case counts, prevention, risks and to find a testing centre near you: http://www.bccdc.ca/
Or follow @CDCofBC on Twitter.
Non-health related information:
Financial, child care and education support, travel, transportation and essential service information: 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.
COVID-19 exposure events, updates and information by health authority:
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 Health: http://www.vch.ca/covid-19/public-exposures
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
A backgrounder follows.
