What you need to know about COVID-19 in B.C. for Jan. 13

THE LATEST:

• On Wednesday, B.C. health officials confirmed 519 new cases of COVID-19 in B.C. Another 12 people have died.
• The provincial death toll from COVID-19 reached 1,031.
• There are 360people in B.C. hospitals, including 76 in intensive care.
• There are4,810 active cases in the province.
• As of Tuesday, 62,294people had received a COVID-19 vaccine dose in B.C.
• Testing patients for COVID-19 before their surgeries could reduce hospital outbreaks in B.C., a new project suggests.
• An emergency room doctor in Whistler, B.C., is calling for an inter-provincial travel ban after seeing a "worrying" number of tourists over the holidays.
• Island Health is delivering doses of the Moderna vaccine to theCowichan Tribes, whose older members are expected to receive their first shots on Wednesday.

B.C. health officialsconfirmed519cases of COVID-19 in the provinceoverthe past 24 hourson Wednesday and that 12 more people had died.

The provincial death toll now stands at 1,031.

There are currently 4,810active cases of the virus in the province. There are360people in hospital, 76of whom are in critical care.

There are currently 50 active outbreaks at long-term care homes in the province as of Monday.On Tuesday, the province announcedone new health-care facility outbreak at Mount St. Joseph's Hospital in Vancouver.

The next provincial COVID-19 update is scheduled for 3 p.m. PT on Thursday.

Testing pilot project

A pilot project in B.C.'s largest health authority suggests testing patients for COVID-19 before their scheduledsurgery and transfer to wards from emergency departments could reduce hospital outbreaks in B.C.

Fraser Health said 65 of 5,681 patients who were booked for surgery tested positive for the coronavirus, but had no symptoms andwould not have warranted a test based on a screening questionnaire.Of 2,969 patients booked for elective surgery, 11 were infected withthe virus but were asymptomatic.

A respirologistwho is part of the COVID-19 rapid-testing pilot project at Vancouver International Airport says preliminary results showpromise in deploying such testing at B.C.'s hard-hit long-term care homes.

Meanwhile, an emergency room doctor in Whistler is calling on B.C.to restrict travel from other provincesafter seeing a "worrying" number of patients from Ontario and Quebec over the holidays.

Dr. Annie Gareau, an emergency physician at Whistler Health Care Centre, told Radio-Canada she's concerned that an influx of visitors from outside the region could lead to uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, overwhelming the health-care system.

On Monday, Interior Health confirmed an outbreakin the Canim Lake community east of 100 Mile House. So far, 32 cases of COVID-19 have been linked to the First Nations communitywhere, according to the 2016 census, 228 people live.

B.C.'s health restrictions are in effect until at least Feb. 5 at midnight. The current orders includea ban on gatherings with people outside of one's immediate household.The province's non-essential travel advisoryremains in place, including travel into and out of B.C., andbetween regions.

Cowichan Tribesvaccinations

Doses of a vaccineare expected to arrive on Cowichan Tribes territory on Vancouver Island on Wednesday and members over 65 will receive their first shot as soon as possible, according to the Island Health Authority.

The First Nationhas seen case numbers more than triple in under a week and all residents are under a shelter-in-place order until Jan. 22.

According to Island Health, the entire population of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, also located in the mid-Island region,was recently vaccinated after experiencinga surge in cases.

READ MORE:

• An emergency room doctor in Whistleris calling for restrictions on inter-provincial travel after seeing aconcerning number of patients from Ontario and Quebec over the holidays.
• Preliminary results of a COVID-19 rapid-testing pilot project at Vancouver International Airport showpromise in deploying such testing at B.C.'s hard-hit long-term care homes, according to arespirologistwho is part of the pilot.
• B.C.'s vaccination program has begun in earnest. Questions remain about how it will roll out.
• Churches in the Township of Langley could lose propertytax grantsafterbeingfined forbreakingCOVID-19 rules ifa local councillor succeeds with a motion presented to council this week.
• Nineteen more COVID-19 cases linked to the Big White Ski Resort near Kelowna, B.C., were confirmed by Interior Health on Tuesday, bringing the total to 162 cases.
• This online calculator estimates when you'll receive your COVID-19 vaccine.

What's happening elsewhere in Canada

As of 8p.m. PT on Tuesday,Canada had recorded more than 674,473 cases and 17,233deaths.

The number of active cases stood at 80,793.

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