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 that 78.1% of all adults in B.C. and 76.8% of those 12 and older have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. In addition, 30.5% of all adults in B.C. and 28.5% of those 12 and older have received their second dose.
“In total, 4,886,709 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in B.C., 1,320,194 of which are second doses.
“As a result of the extreme heat in recent days, some vaccine clinic locations and times were adjusted to ensure the safety of both those providing and receiving vaccines. Despite this challenge, over 95% of appointments proceeded as scheduled. As the hot weather continues, we encourage everyone to stay hydrated, especially when working or doing other activities outside.
“Over the last three reporting periods, we had a total of 145 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 147,549 cases in British Columbia. This includes: 57 new cases from June 25 to 26, 50 new cases from June 26 to 27 and 38 new cases in the last 24 hours.
“Of the new cases, 48 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 68 are in the Fraser Health region, one is in the Island Health region, 26 are in the Interior Health region and two are of people who reside outside of Canada. There are no new cases in the Northern Health region.
“There are currently 930 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and a further 144,848 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 107 individuals are currently hospitalized, 37 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.
“There has been one new health-care outbreak at Surrey Memorial Hospital.
“There have been five new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 1,754 deaths in British Columbia. Our condolences are with the family, friends and caregivers of the people who have died as a result of COVID-19.
“As today’s modelling presentation shows, we are on track and have a solid foundation to maintain our progress in BC’s Restart plan. We continue to see a significant decline in new cases of COVID-19, hospitalizations and deaths as the number of people who are fully immunized goes up.
“In step with these efforts, public health teams across the province are closely watching the case data to ensure we maintain this positive momentum. And, with testing, including whole genome sequencing of all new cases, rapid contact tracing and tracking of close contacts, we are in a much better position.
“Let’s make this a summer of hope and rejuvenation. Let’s enjoy the warm days with safe social interactions and let’s give everyone the best protection possible by ensuring we all get fully immunized with both doses as soon as we are eligible.”