New Brunswick is reporting six deaths related to COVID-19, including a person in their 30s, in its latest weekly report.
It’s only the fourth person in that age group to die as a result of the virus, but Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Yves Leger said younger people can have serious outcomes.
“It tends to be more severe in people that are older,” he said. “It doesn’t mean younger individuals cannot be severely impacted by COVID. We also know that there are other risk factors that increase chances of more severe complications.”
He said the risk factors include people who are immunocompromised or have one or more underlying medical conditions.
The report also showed the number of PCR-confirmed cases has increased this week after a four-week decreasing trend. There were 797 new PCR-confirmed cases, compared to 675 the week prior.
Of note, only certain people are eligible for a PCR test in New Brunswick — including people over age 50, people who are immunocompromised or pregnant.
Rapid tests are also only available for select people in New Brunswick. While Dr. Theresa Tam, the country’s top doctor, recently recommended people stock up on rapid tests ahead of the fall, New Brunswick will continue to only offer the tests to those who are symptomatic.
People will also have to book an appointment online to pick them up.
Leger said there are no plan to change the criteria despite Tam’s advice.
“So, they are there and they are available, but they do remain available for people who do have symptoms,” he said.
Meanwhile, the number of hospital admissions is stable at 22 — the same number as the previous week.
According to the province, the highest proportion of hospitalizations is among people aged 70 to 89.
Omicron subvariant most dominant
The most recent random samples sequenced shows that the BA. 5 Omicron subvariant is most prevalent in the province. Ninety-four per cent of the samples were BA. 5, while five per cent were BA. 4.
BA. 2. represented the remaining one per cent.
Moderna has developed a new vaccine that works for the original strain of the virus but also targets the Omicron variants that have emerged.
Leger said people shouldn’t be waiting for that vaccine — known as a bivalent vaccine — to arrive, which is still getting approval in Canada.
“Our current vaccines do provide very good protection against those severe outcomes,” he said. “I think it’s important not to dismiss the importance of our current vaccine.”
He said bivalent vaccines do tend to perform better, at least according to the initial studies, but it remains to be seen whether that translates into any greater real-world protection than the ones already available.
237 healthcare workers off the job
The province’s two health authorities report independent COVID-19 numbers.
While provincial data only accounts for those who are admitted to hospital with COVID-19, the health authorities include the number of patients who were initially admitted for another reason and later test positive for COVID.
There are 95 active admissions within Horizon Health Network, with six in the intensive care unit. Vitalité Health Network is reporting an additional 18 active admissions, with one in the intensive care unit.
There are a total of 237 healthcare workers off the job due to the virus.