Coronavirus: New Brunswick dental offices will not open before May 13

If you’ve been waiting through the coronavirus pandemic for a teeth-cleaning in New Brunswick, you may need to wait just a little bit longer.

The New Brunswick Dental Society (NBDS) said late on Friday that they don’t’ expect to have dental offices open until at least Wednesday, May 13.

READ MORE: New Brunswick enters 2nd phase of COVID-19 recovery plan

The NBDS said it needs time to allow its members to prepare to follow the society’s new operational plan.

Those plans were a requirement for all businesses planning to reopen in New Brunswick under the province’s “orange” phase in its COVID-19 recovery plan.

3:20 How dentists are preparing to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Dentist offices have been shuttered since New Brunswick declared a state of emergency in March.

“The NBDS Operational Plan is our new standard of practice and must be implemented in each clinic prior to any return to practice,” said Joy Carmichael, president of the NBDS.

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“We will be placing a strong emphasis in the early stages, on physical distancing and on the importance of dealing with the backlog of patients who have been unable to receive full dental care in the past seven weeks.”

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.

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