The number of COVID-19 cases in British Columbia hospitals leapt by nearly 100 this week, as hospital admissions climbed again after falling since mid-May.
As of July 7 there were 369 cases in hospital, up 96 from last Thursday, and 36 cases in ICU, an increase of four, according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
Earlier this week, UBC mathematical biologist and member of the independent B.C. COVID-19 Modelling Group Sarah Otto warned that the province was in the midst of a third wave of the Omicron variant, driven by the BA.5 subvariant.
The BCCDC also reported 765 cases for the week ending July 2 (up 145 over the previous week), though due to restrictions on PCR testing the true figure is likely significantly higher.
Just over 12,200 tests were performed the week ending July 2, and the provincewide test positivity rate was 7.5 per cent, unchanged from the week prior.
For the week ending July 2, the province also reported rising hospital admissions for the second consecutive week, after five weeks of decline.
The BCCDC reported 172 hospital admissions, an increase of three over the initial report from the week prior. Weekly admission numbers are typically revised up significantly the following week. For context, the initial figure reported last Thursday of 169 admissions between June 19 and June 25 has now been revised up by 23.6 per cent to 209.
The latest weekly data reports 24 deaths between June 26 and July 2. That figure is also preliminary and expected to be revised upward. The figure reported last Thursday of 17 deaths between June 19 and June 25 has since been revised upward by a whopping 94 per cent to 33.
Adding complexity to the numbers, the way the province now tracks deaths, dubbed “all cause mortality,” includes all deaths in the reporting period among those who tested positive for COVID-19 in the prior 30 days.
Health officials have said this model likely overestimates deaths.
Subsequent analysis has found an average of 45 per cent of deaths reported under the “all cause mortality” model between April 9 and May 21 were actually caused by COVID-19, according to the BCCDC.
That figure too, however, is expected to see future revision upward.
Despite waning immunity from COVID-19 vaccines, data continues to show that people with two or more vaccinations are at lower risk of severe outcomes from the virus.
According to data from May 8 to July 2, unvaccinated people were about twice as likely to end up in hospital and three times as likely to end up in the intensive care unit as people who were vaccinated with three doses.
Health Minister Adrian Dix, acting provincial health officer Dr. Martin Lavoie and B.C. immunization lead Dr. Penny Ballem are slated to hold a briefing Friday at 1 p.m.
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