28 people died of COVID-19 in B.C. on Thursday, the deadliest day of the pandemic so far.
723 new cases of the virus were announced on Thursday.
There are 9,524 active cases of COVID-19 across B.C.
346 patients are in hospital, with 83 in intensive care.
587 people in B.C. have died of the disease since the pandemic began.
B.C. health officials announced 723 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday and 28 more deaths — the highest number of deaths in a 24-hour period since the start of the pandemic.
All but two of the people who died were residents of long-term care homes.
As of Thursday afternoon, there were 346 people in hospital, with 83 in intensive care. B.C. has 9,524 active cases of the virus, with 11,947 under public health monitoring.
The district municipality, which is located in north central British Columbia, has only one small acute care facility. Medical staff have received 33 calls in just six days, when the monthly average is between 50 and 60.
The news came on Wednesday afternoon, hours after it was announced that Health Canada had approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
Premier John Horgan, joined by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix and pandemic response leader Dr. Ross Brown, said the province plans to immunize 400,000 people against the coronavirus by March 2021, with priority given to residents and staff of long-term care homes and health-care workers.
The first batch of vaccines, around 4,000 in all, arrive this week and will be distributed from two clinics: one in the Vancouver Coastal Health region and the other from the Fraser Health region.
As more doses of the vaccine become available, priority will be given to seniors over 80, people with underlying health conditions, people who are under-housed, and people living in remote and isolated Indigenous communities.
By April, front-line workers including teachers, grocery store workers, firefighters, and people working in food processing plants will be prioritized.
Provincewide, COVID-19 restrictions have been extended to Jan. 8 at midnight.
That means residents can only socialize with people in their household, and all events and gatherings must be cancelled. British Columbians are being told not to travel outside their local communities for non-essential reasons, whether it’s to visit family or take a vacation.
READ MORE:
All your questions about the COVID-19 vaccine in B.C. answered here.
B.C.’s provincial health officer said Thursday there has been a “concerted effort” to sabotage international immunization programs against COVID-19, and that the province is coordinating with RCMP to ensure safe transport of the vaccine.
The aunt of a B.C. infant born while his mother was in a coma due to COVID-19 complications says the family is trying to stay hopeful but keep their expectations reasonable as the baby’s mother remains unconscious a month later.
The province has sent a rapid-response team of paramedics to Fort St. James, B.C., where at least 40 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the community of around 1,500.
What’s happening elsewhere in Canada
As of 6:45 p.m. ET on Thursday, Canada’s COVID-19 case count stood at 442,069, with 73,225 of those cases considered active. A CBC News tally of deaths based on provincial reports, regional health information and CBC’s reporting stood at 13,109.
Ontario’s control over the pandemic remains “precarious” at the moment, health officials said Thursday as they released updated COVID-19 projections and the province reported a record-high 1,983 new cases.
Quebec on Thursday reported 1,842 new cases of COVID-19 and 33 additional deaths, bringing the death toll in the province to 7,382.
Manitoba health officials reported 293 new COVID-19 cases and 13 more deaths on Thursday. The most recent deaths include nine linked to outbreaks at care homes.
Nova Scotia reported four new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, while New Brunswick reported four new cases and Newfoundland and Labrador reported one new case.
There were no new cases reported in Prince Edward Island.
What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
Common symptoms include:
Fever.
Cough.
Tiredness.
Shortness of breath.
Loss of taste or smell.
Headache.
But more serious symptoms can develop, including difficulty breathing and pneumonia.
What should I do if I feel sick?
Use the B.C. Centre for Disease Control’s COVID-19 self-assessment tool. Testing is recommended for anyone with symptoms of cold or flu, even if they’re mild. People with severe difficulty breathing, severe chest pain, difficulty waking up or other extreme symptoms should call 911.
What can I do to protect myself?
Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly. Keep them clean.
HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.
The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.
Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.
“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”
The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.
A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.
Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.
“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.
Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.
The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.
“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.
Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.
The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.
“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.
Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.
Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.
A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
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