New Brunswick is reporting 69 new cases of COVID-19 and says the number of people hospitalized due to the virus is continuing to trend downwards.
The province says 77 more people have recovered from COVID-19, with the active number of cases at 752.
There are 18 people in intensive care and another 29 are in hospital.. Of those, 26 are over the age of 60. Eleven people are on a ventilator. One of the people hospitalized is under the age of 19.
“Hospitalizations continue to trend downwards from a week ago, while the number of cases in intensive care units remains stable,” the province said in a statement on Tuesday.
Ten of the 47 people hospitalized were initially admitted for other reasons and contracted COVID-19 due to outbreaks at hospitals in Moncton, Saint John and Miramichi. The province says most of these people have mild to moderate symptoms of the virus.
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The government also says it is ramping up the availability of booster doses.
As of this week, anyone 50 or over is eligible for a COVID-19 booster dose of an mRNA vaccine if six months have passed since their second dose.
“In the coming weeks, eligibility for booster doses will be expanded to those in their 40s, followed by all other New Brunswickers. With the holidays approaching, we need to be mindful of the measures each of us can take to ensure we are able to safely spend time with our family and friends,” said Health Minister Dorothy Shephard.
Public health reported Tuesday that 82 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers are fully vaccinated and 87.6 per cent have received their first dose.
Cases in schools
There are more than 125 active cases across 53 schools and 24 early learning and child care facilities throughout the province.
In a release, the province says the majority of cases are impacting kindergarten-to-Grade 5 schools, with “transmission often occurring outside of the school setting or in instances when Public Health measures are not followed.”
Early Childhood Development Minister Dominic Cardy says the province is seeing increasing cases in schools over the past week.
“We continue to work with school districts and public health to manage outbreaks,” said Cardy in a statement. “It is important that when students or staff have any symptoms that they stay home and get tested.”