Premier John Horgan and Health Minister Adrian Dix watch as Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry provides an update on COVID-19. (Photo: B.C. government.)
B.C. hit a couple of nasty milestones this week. The province had more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases on a single day this week, an all-time high, and passed 100,000 total cases since the pandemic began.
The variants of concern appear to be driving the surge, which lead the province to bring in new restrictions early in the week.
"We are likely to be in for a rough ride for the next few days," says Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s Provincial Health Officer.
COVID-19 variants of concern are more transmissible, appear to cause more severe illness and in some cases can evade immunity or vaccines.
“Rising case levels, variants of concern, increased transmission and an increase in more severe cases are huge concerns,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “B.C. public health officials are making the tough choices now to break the chain and protect our communities.”
Dr. Henry said five per cent of people with COVID-19 in B.C. end up in hospital and 19 per cent of those need ICU care. But with variant cases, one-third of people who are hospitalized need ICU care, which suggests that variants cause more severe illness.
B.C. is far from alone as the world is struggling against a third wave of this pandemic. But on the positive side, more than 787,000 people in B.C. have now received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. While that only represents about 15 per cent of the population, it’s still progress. Canada-wide, 11.86 per cent of people have received at least one dose.
Dr. Henry says the vaccines are highly effective, especially against serious illness, even after a single dose, but it takes about 21 days for the protection to fully kick in, so people should continue wearing masks, washing their hands and keeping physically distant.
It’s unknown what the optimal time spacing between vaccines is, but in B.C. people will only be offered second doses once everyone has been offered a first dose, she said. That should be in June or July, she said.
Here’s what else happened this week:
- B.C. brought in new restrictions, including a ban on indoor dining, the closure of gyms, except for one-on-one training, the closure of Whistler Blackcomb, expanding the mask mandate in elementary schools and putting a stop to in-person religious ceremonies, which had just been opened up last week. “Our balance in B.C. is now off. In the last six days we’ve seen the start of exponential growth in new cases. The strain on our healthcare system is ramping up,” Dr. Henry said. “We do not yet have enough people protected with our vaccines to keep our loved ones and our communities safe. A circuit-breaker is now required.”
- Dr. Theresa Tam, head of the Public Health Agency of Canada, said there have been 10,780 COVID-19 cases in Canada detected so far, with the numbers highest in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. Up to March 31, B.C. detected 2,134 cases of B.117, 49 cases of B.1.351 and 370 cases of P.1.
- Dr. Henry strongly discouraged people from travelling into B.C. from other provinces. “We don’t want you here right now,” she said. “We need to hunker down for these next few weeks. It is movement of people that moves the virus.”
- Canada has paused giving the AstraZeneca vaccine to people younger than 55, but B.C. is now offering it to people aged 55 to 65, to be administered at local pharmacies. For more information about why this vaccine could be risky for those younger than 55, see this research paper. Pharmacies were apparently swamped with calls, even before appointments were available.
- Dr. Henry said a study from Germany showed 29 cases of a blood clotting disorder occurred after about 3 million vaccinations were given, meaning the risk could be as high as one in 100,000. She said the benefits still outweigh the risks for older people and that she doesn’t expect to see any clotting issues in Canada.
- Younger people are getting sicker with the COVID-19 variants of concern, the National Post reports.
- B.C. Premier John Horgan got himself into hot water with people aged 20 to 39, when he said they were not paying as much attention to pandemic restrictions and should curtail their social activity. “We have made such great progress together, focusing on our collective wellbeing. We cannot blow it now,” Horgan said. “Do no blow this for your parents and your neighbours and others.” Later, he tweeted that he was trying to get the attention of the few who are not following restrictions and thanked those who are.
- Alberta’s top doctor says transmission of COVID-19 is increasing outdoors, the Globe and Mail reported.
- Rates of stillbirth and maternal death have increased during the pandemic, Reuters reported.
- The chronic stress of the pandemic isn’t doing our brains any good, the CBC reports.
- On that same note, remote workers say they’re just as productive working from home, but that they are working more hours, the Globe and Mail reports. Also, many people are burning out.
The pandemic is dragging on much longer than any of us expected. We have to hang on tight and hope things turn around.
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