There are now 4,825 cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in B.C. after health officials announced 80 new cases Thursday.
Deputy provincial health officer Dr. Reka Gustafason reports that there are 1,526 cases in Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), 2,533 in Fraser Health, 159 on Vancouver Island, 411 in Interior Health and 121 in Northern Health.
Additionally, there have been 75 cases of COVID-19 in B.C. of people who reside outside of Canada.
There have been no new health-care facility outbreaks. In total, eight long-term care or assisted-living facilities and one acute-care facility have active outbreaks.
There has been one new community outbreak at Loblaws in the Fraser Health authority. So far, nine cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed. In addition, there continue to be community exposure events and on flights into and out of British Columbia.
There have been two new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 200 deaths in British Columbia.
Of the total COVID-19 cases, 11 individuals are hospitalized, four of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. As well, 2,574 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases.
There are 780 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 3, 845 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered.
“Testing for COVID-19 is an important part of our provincial pandemic response. We continue to step up the capacity, in each health region and in our labs, to match our public health activities," said Gustafason.
“Testing allows us to trace and contain the spread. The tests tell us who is positive for the virus, as well as how far the virus may have spread among close contacts when an outbreak or community cluster occurs.
“We know as the number of new cases increases, demand for testing also goes up. That is why each health region has been working to add further assessment and testing capacity. New assessment and testing centres and extended hours of service have been added in the Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health regions to address increases in demand. Today, we have the ability to complete approximately 8,000 tests every day.
“If you do develop symptoms, no matter how mild, your first step is to distance yourself from others and contact 811 or your health-care provider to arrange for an assessment.
“If public health has advised you to self-isolate because you have been exposed to COVID-19, please follow their advice. Even if you have no symptoms, a negative test does not mean you can shorten the period of self-isolation."
