Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry shared localized COVID-19 data for the first time on Thursday, Aug. 27. (Gov't of B.C.)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

covid-19 update

Local COVID-19 numbers shared by health ministry

Aug 27, 2020 | 3:18 PM

NANAIMO — New data from the Ministry of Health shows how COVID-19 impacted the mid island region.

The map provided during a Thursday, Aug. 27 news conference showed there were 15 confirmed COVID-19 cases within Nanaimo and six in the Parksville area since the start of the pandemic.

The Comox Valley sustained 18 COVID-19 cases, with nine confirmed to the south in the Cowichan Valley.

This is the first time provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has shared localized COVID-19 numbers, though regional numbers across Vancouver Island were previously shared.

She said local numbers couldn’t be shared at the beginning of the pandemic due to confidentiality concerns.

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“Early on we gave broader geographic areas because there was such small numbers people would identify (others) if they knew people had travelled to certain areas or had come back from a cruise ship, for example,” she said.

Regional information was provided several months later, breaking down the Island Health region into South, Central and North regions.

The new localized numbers will be updated at the end of every month.

Dr. Henry announced three new cases across Island Health on Thursday, for a total of 173 since the pandemic began.

They were among the 63 new diagnoses announced on Thursday for the entire province.

There is currently 903 active coronavirus cases across B.C., with one additional fatality.

Editors note: this story was updated to clarify the number of cases within the area, which were initially reported much lower

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