Metrics tracking COVID-19 in B.C. have largely stabilized after trending down since early February.
The number of COVID-19 patients in B.C. hospitals had fallen in 30 consecutive data updates until yesterday, when it rose slightly, to 258 from 254. In the past 24 hours, the count has dropped by a net total of three, to 255.
Of those, 52 people are sick enough to be in intensive care units (ICUs), which is three more than yesterday and the highest count in two weeks.
Six people are known to have died in the past 24 hours while infected with the disease. That raises the province's pandemic death toll to 2,981.
Some good news is that the number of active outbreaks in health-care facilities and seniors' homes has fallen to four – the lowest total in months, thanks to no new outbreaks and the outbreak at Campbell River's Yaculta Lodge being declared over.
Officials detected 271 new infections in the past 24 hours. That is two more than were detected the previous day, and the highest one-day total in 12 days.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, however, has told vaccinated people with mild symptoms to not get tested so as to free up tests for those who are more vulnerable. As a result she has called the daily case counts "not accurate."
The B.C. government on Feb. 10 stopped providing data for active infections, and the number of those considered to have recovered from COVID-19, for that reason.
Victoria does, however, still provide data for new known infections, and its cumulative total for infections is now 354,874.
Vaccinations help limit the spread of the disease that spawned a global pandemic, and help reduce the seriousness of infections that do occur.
The vast majority of British Columbians are already vaccinated.
In total, 4,526,648 eligible B.C. residents have had at least one dose of vaccine, while 4,343,349 are considered fully vaccinated with two doses, and 2,651,042 have had three doses.
Recent Statistics Canada 2021 census data counted 5,000,879 residents in B.C.
Glacier Media's calculation therefore is that more than 90.5 per cent of B.C.'s total population has had at least one dose of vaccine, and more than 86.8 per cent of the province's total population has had two doses. More than 53 per cent have had their third, or booster doses. •
