B.C. maintaining ‘fine balance’ in COVID-19 spread as Phase 3 nears

Jun 23, 2020 | 3:20 PM

VICTORIA —B.C.’s top doctor says the latest round of COVID-19 modelling data suggests the province is in a good position to reopen further under Phase 3.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry revealed new numbers on Tuesday that show how the spread of the coronavirus has been going up and how B.C. is trying to hold a “fine balance” to keep rates of transmission down.

The latest figures suggest that British Columbians are operating at a social-interaction rate of around 65 per cent of normal.

They will be used to make decisions about moving to Phase 3 under B.C.’s plan to reopen the economy as the number of cases of the virus continues to be low.

Homeowner grant

Local politicians raise concerns over province "taking advantage of the north"

20h ago

Highway of Tears

Public safety ministers attend Highway of Tears Symposium

20h ago

Council of Forest Industries

Economic impact report on forestry grim

20h ago

Premier John Horgan is expected to announce that move as early as Wednesday.

Aside from the modelling, 13 new cases of COVID-19 were announced today by Dr. Henry, and none in the Northern Health region.

Here’s the regional breakdown:

Vancouver Coastal Health: 960 cases
Fraser Health: 1480
Vancouver Island Health: 131
Interior Health: 199
Northern Health: 65

The total number of test-positive cases now sits at 2835, though 2491, or 87.8 per cent of people, have fully recovered.

There are 174 active cases in B.C. at the moment. Sixteen of those people are hospitalized, and seven of those people are in either critical care or intensive care units.

There has been one additional death in B.C. bringing the provincial death toll to 170.

by Richard Zussman, Global News with files from CKPG Today

Click here to report an error or typo in this article

B.C. maintaining ‘fine balance’ in COVID-19 spread as Phase 3 nears

What's Trending