Nova Scotia reports 23 new cases of COVID-19, most in Central Zone

Nova Scotia reported 23 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday and 26 recoveries.

In a release, the province said there are 13 cases in the Central Zone, six in the Western Zone, three in the Northern Zone and one in the Eastern Zone.

Nova Scotia now has 160 active cases of COVID-19. Of those, 11 are in hospital, including four in ICU.

Nova Scotia Health labs completed 2,70 tests on Thursday.

The province is continuing to manage an outbreak at Valley Regional Hospital in Kentville, where five patients have tested positive for COVID-19. One person is in ICU at the hospital.

“Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) continues to test patients, staff and doctors identified as close contacts,” the release said. “As a precaution, NSHA has made testing available for staff and doctors on site who want to get tested.”

Another two schools were notified of COVID-19 exposures on Thursday. A full list of schools with exposures is available online.

Vaccination update

According to the provincial COVID-19 dashboard, 82.8 per cent of Nova Scotians have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 77.6 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Friday’s release said there were 77 cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia with an episode date between Oct. 14 and Oct. 20. Of those, 23 were fully vaccinated, three were partially vaccinated and 51 were unvaccinated.

There have been 5,506 cases between March 15 and Oct. 20. Of those, 324 were fully vaccinated, 353 were partially vaccinated and 4,829 were unvaccinated.

Of the 304 people hospitalized in that period, 11 were fully vaccinated, 30 were partially vaccinated and 263 were unvaccinated.

And of the 32 people who died, three were fully vaccinated, three were partially vaccinated and 26 were unvaccinated.