Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry saying they've administered all the vaccine delivered to B.C. (flickr/Gov't of B.C.)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

covid-19 update

LTC homes avoid new COVID-19 fatalities as new cases tick upwards

Feb 23, 2021 | 4:18 PM

NANAIMO — It was a day of wins and losses for B.C. in the ongoing fight against COVID-19.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced 559 new cases on Tuesday, Feb. 23, up from the mid-400’s seen the week before.

“This uptick we’ve seen in the last few days is one we’re managing as aggressively as we can to understand better where we are,” she said during a news conference.

Island Health reported 37 new cases of COVID on Tuesday, in line with recent highs as the health authority sustained wide spread infections in the Nanaimo and Cowichan Valley areas.

There’s currently 140 cases active in the vast central Vancouver Island area of the 232 in Island Health.

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Dr. Henry said despite the rise in cases seen in recent days, there were no new cases among the most vulnerable populations in long term or acute care homes in the last day.

“This is a reflection of the vaccines we’ve had and their use and deployment into long term care and assisted living across the province. It really is remarkable that the effects of even a single dose…is upwards of 80 per cent within two to three weeks of receiving the vaccine.”

Nearly 288,000 doses of vaccine were provided by Tuesday province-wide, with nearly 59,000 being a second dose to seniors and elders in long term care.

As of Tuesday, there were 4,677 active COVID-19 cases with 238 people in hospital and 69 receiving intensive care.

One person in a Vancouver Coastal acute care home passed away.

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