New Brunswick will remain for now in the first, least restrictive, level of its three-level action plan to curb COVID-19 spread over the winter, the province’s chief medical officer of health announced Friday.
While Dr. Jennifer Russell said she was concerned about the 174 cases reported Thursday – a new daily record for the province – she said Public Health does not see a need to recommend further restrictions.
“The guidance and advice now in place are sufficient to meet the objective of the winter action plan to secure our health care system while minimizing the impact on the everyday lives of New Brunswickers,” she said.
Under the first level of the action plan, informal indoor gatherings in homes are limited to a maximum of 20 people and informal outdoor gatherings are limited to 50.
As well, masks will be required in outdoor public spaces where physical distancing cannot be maintained, and physical distancing will be required in public spaces where proof-of-vaccination is not required, such as malls, grocery stores, retail stores, salons and spas.
The other two levels of the action plan will have more stringent rules, which may include reduced household bubbles, lower capacity in spaces and limited travel in and out of impacted areas.
Russell said Friday that the province has four criteria to determine a change in levels:
- The number of hospitalizations and people in intensive care
- An increase in the seven-day rolling average
- A test positivity rate of 10 per cent in the province or in a single health zone
- The ability of Public Health to contact trace cases.
“In the current context, it is hospitalizations and ICU admissions that we are watching most closely, and the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital and ICU admissions have both been trending downward in recent days,” said Russell.
She said there are 36 people in hospital, down from 40 on Thursday, with 12 people in intensive care, down from 16.
Russell noted that while the province would quickly bring in new restrictions last year during spikes in cases, the situation is different now where most eligible New Brunswickers have been vaccinated.
“Most people who contract the virus recover quickly,” she said. “Having a highly vaccinated population allows us to respond differently than we would have done a few months ago.”
New cases
The province reported 143 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, the second-highest daily record. Russell said a “significant proportion” of the cases are among children and teens and most of the cases are concentrated around the province’s three largest cities.
The province also reported the death of a person in their 70s in Zone 7, the Miramichi region.
Dorothy Shephard, the province’s health minister, also took note of the record-breaking daily case numbers, and said one third of Friday’s cases are among people under the age of 19.
“It continues to be something that Public Health is watching closely,” she said. “We know children tend to get mild symptoms and recover quickly, but they can carry the virus to other people and that becomes concerning, especially when it’s carried to a vulnerable or unvaccinated person.”
She urged New Brunswickers to continue to follow public health restrictions.
“Everything we do is about finding a balance so that we can protect our health-care system and have as normal a life as possible,” she said.
Shephard said the province recently expanded COVID-19 booster shots to people aged 50 and older and plans to expand eligibility to more age groups in the coming weeks.
Almost 150,000 people are currently eligible for the booster shot. So far, the province has administered more than 62,000 booster doses, Shephard said.
Case breakdown
The 23 new cases in Zone 1 (Moncton region) are as follows:
- three people nine and under;
- a person 10-19;
- three people 20-29;
- two people 30-39;
- four people 40-49;
- five people 50-59;
- three people 60-69; and
- two people 70-79.
Eighteen cases are under investigation and five are contacts of previously known cases.
The 28 new cases in Zone 2 (Saint John region) are as follows:
- three people nine and under;
- three people 10-19;
- seven people 20-29;
- two people 30-39;
- three people 40-49;
- four people 50-59;
- four people 60-69; and
- two people 70-79.
Eighteen cases are under investigation and 10 are contacts of previously known cases.
The 61 new cases in Zone 3 (Fredericton region) are as follows:
- nine people nine and under;
- 19 people 10-19;
- 10 people 20-29;
- five people 30-39;
- eight people 40-49;
- three people 50-59;
- four people 60-69;
- two people 70-79; and
- a person 80-89.
Fifty-three cases are under investigation and eight are contacts of previously known cases.
The eight new cases in Zone 4 (Edmundston region) are as follows:
- a person nine and under;
- three people 10-19;
- two people 20-29;
- a person 30-39; and
- a person 40-49.
Six cases are contacts of previously known cases and two are under investigation.
The two new cases in Zone 5 (Campbellton region) are as follows:
- a person 10-19; and
- a person 50-59.
Both cases are under investigation
The two new cases in Zone 6 (Bathurst region) are as follows:
- a person 40-49; and
- a person 60-69.
Both cases are under investigation.
The 19 new cases in Zone 7 (Miramichi region) are as follows:
- two people nine and under;
- two people 10-19;
- four people 20-29;
- three people 30-39;
- a person 40-49;
- a person 50-59;
- three people 60-69;
- two people 70-79; and
- a person 80-89.
Nine cases are under investigation, nine are contacts of previously known cases and one case is travel-related.
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