B.C. now has fewer COVID-19 patients in hospital than were in ICU alone at peak of 3rd wave

British Columbia reported 180 new cases of COVID-19 and one additional death Friday as hospitalization numbers continued their steady downward trend.

It left B.C.’s seven-day average for new cases unchanged at 161.

Of the new cases, 11 were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 107 were in the Fraser Health region, 13 were in the Island Health region, 39 were in the Interior Health region and 10 were in the Northern Health region

There were 162 people in hospital, less than one-third the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in B.C. at the peak of the pandemic’s third wave.

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Friday was also the second day in a row B.C. reported fewer people in hospital in total than there were COVID-19 patients just in critical or intensive care at the end of April.

The number of COVID-19 patients in the ICU fell to 45 on Friday.

Nearly 3.4 million British Columbians — almost 66 per cent of B.C.’s population — have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

Of them, nearly 498,000 people, or 9.6 per cent of B.C.’s population — have also had a second dose.

British Columbia has reported 146,137 cases since the start of the pandemic, while 1,730 people have died.

B.C. is expected to move to to Step 2 of it’s 2021 restart plan on Tuesday, which would allow for larger outdoor gatherings, an end to provincial travel restrictions and the resumption of some indoor activities like movie screenings.