B.C. again records more than 1,000 COVID cases

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It’s another day of more than 1,000 COVID-19 cases in B.C., as the province announces plans to expand the offering of the AstraZeneca vaccine at pharmacies in the coming days.

The province says 1,068 people have tested positive for the virus, for a total of 105,988.

Three more people have died, for a total of 1,489.

There are 328 people hospitalized, 96 of whom are in critical care.

BC #covid19 Apr 6
1068 new-total 105988
3 deaths-1489
VCH(25828)+352
FH(60196)+492
Int(8865)+106
Island(3624)+73
North(6171)+43
+2 Non Res
Hosp/ICU(318/96)328/96#bcpoli @news1130

— LizaYuzda (@LizaYuzda) April 6, 2021

More than 200 new cases of variants of concern have been confirmed, with Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry noting all but one of those cases were within the Vancouver Coastal Health region.

While there are a total of 3,766 confirmed variant cases, Henry says 266 are active.

“So, that’s about three per cent of our active cases right now,” she said.

A daily record of 55,255 COVID-19 vaccine doses was administered in B.C. In total, more than 900,000 doses have been given out, 87,000 of which are second doses.

More pharmacies to offer AstraZeneca to British Columbians aged 55 to 65

For the past week, Metro Vancouverites aged 55 to 65 have been able to book appointments to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine at dozens of pharmacies. Dix says in the next few days, B.C.’s AstraZeneca supply will be up to 203,000 doses, which means pharmacies elsewhere will be able to offer the same to people in that age group.

“From the 203,000 doses, a significant portion has been moved to an expanded list of participating pharmacies in Metro Vancouver, including Sea to Sky and Sunshine Coast, and other key communities across B.C., including Prince George, Fort St John, Terrace, Dawson Creek, Kelowna, Kamloops, Vernon, Parksville, Nanaimo, and Victoria,” Dix said.

“We expect by Thursday or Friday of this week vaccine will be in those communities and participating pharmacies and ready for administration to those aged 55 to 65. Specific information on participating pharmacies will be provided by health authorities and the BC Pharmacy Association, so stay tuned for that.”

On Tuesday, the province’s online registration and booking system launched.

Indigenous people aged 18 and older (born in 2003 or earlier), other British Columbians aged 71 and older (born in 1950 or earlier), and those who are deemed clinically extremely vulnerable are currently eligible.

Health Minister Adrian Dix says as of 2 p.m., more than 160,000 British Columbians had registered.

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