B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix says about 90 per cent of residents in long-term care have been immunized, and 10 per cent of B.C.’s 4.3 million residents eligible for vaccination will likely receive their jabs by the end of March if vaccine supplies promised by the federal government arrive.
While Dix acknowledged that many people are looking for information about when and how they can register for vaccination, he said the only thing holding back the campaign at this stage is supply. Ottawa has promised B.C. will receive about 45,000 to 55,000 doses this week, he said.
In general, Dix said, anyone 80 and older who receives home support or is in independent living can expect to be vaccinated between March 1 and March 15, while anyone of that age living in the community independent of home support can expect to be vaccinated from March 15 through the end of March.
Dix said more information — with the details, websites and numbers to call — will be provided in a detailed plan, but, in the meantime, “people can have confidence that, just as we’ve delivered so far, we’re going to be making every effort to do that well and effectively.”
Because only a small part of the population will receive their jabs before mass-vaccination clinics are scheduled to begin in April, it’s essential that everyone continue to follow public-health orders, said Dix.
“It makes no sense now to go in person to do karaoke,” he said. “It makes no sense now, when you can do it virtually, to go and have a trivia event with other people.”
COVID-19 is everywhere in B.C., said Dix, and the presence of variants is increasing.
Another 22 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the Island Health region on Friday, while the number of new cases province-wide was 508. Deputy provincial health officer Dr. Réka Gustafson reported Friday that there are now 72 COVID variants of concern in B.C. — up from 60 on Tuesday — including 52 cases of the U.K. variant that first appeared on the Island, and 20 cases of the so-called South African variant.
Dix said 156,000 people have received a first dose in B.C., while 37,000 have received two doses.
On Thursday, 12,250 people received the COVID vaccine, the single highest number of vaccinations administered in one day.
The province has 13 active outbreaks in long-term care facilities — including Nanaimo’s Wexford Creek Seniors Community, which has one staff case, and Eden Gardens, which had one staff case followed by a resident who tested positive — and six in acute care.
New data released on Friday shows vaccination rates in long-term care homes as of Feb. 15.
At Eden Gardens, 90 per cent of 130 residents had been vaccinated, while 93 per cent of 114 residents on the long-term care side of Wexford Creek had been vaccinated. Vaccination rates range from 81 per cent at Dufferin Place in Nanaimo to 100 per cent at facilities including Cormorant Island Health Centre in Alert Bay, Cowichan Lodge in Duncan and St. Charles Manor in Victoria.
On Friday, there were 117 active cases of COVID-19 in Island Health, 18 of whom are in hospital, including seven in intensive or critical care, according to the B.C. Centre of Disease Control. The majority of cases are in the central Island.
Across B.C., there are 4,486 active cases, 217 of whom are in hospital, including 61 individuals in intensive or critical care. Another 7,699 people are under public-health monitoring for exposure to the virus.
Another six deaths related to COVID-19 — none in Island Health — were reported on Friday.
