COVID-19 Update for Oct 8: Surrey Nursing Home Outbreak | Mandatory Vaccinations for Staff Up to School Boards, Says Horgan | 624 new cases, four deaths | Immunity Weaken Faster in Men Than Women Within Months of Second Pfizer Injection, Study Finds

Article content

Here’s your daily update with everything you need to know about the novel coronavirus situation in British Columbia for October 8, 2021.

Article content

We will provide summaries of what is happening in BC right here so you can get the latest news at a glance. This page will be updated periodically throughout the day, and updates will be added as they happen.

Check back here for more updates throughout the day. You can also get the latest COVID-19 news delivered to your inbox on weekends at 7pm by signing up for our newsletter. here.

BC COVID-19 CASE NUMBERS

According to the latest figures given on October 7:

• Total number of confirmed cases: 191,748 (5,929 active)
• New cases since October 6: 624
• Total deaths: 1,996 (four additional deaths)
• Hospitalized cases: 373 (up to 23)
• Intensive care: 132 (four less)
• Total vaccinations: 4,103,158 received the first dose; 3,804,517 second doses
• Recovered from acute infection: 183,406
• Long-term care and assisted living homes and acute care facilities currently affected: 16

Article content

IN DEEP:Here are all the cases of BC from the new coronavirus in 2021 | in 2020

BC GUIDES AND LINKS

• COVID-19: Here is everything you need to know about the new coronavirus

• COVID-19: The BC Vaccine Passport is here and this is how it works

• COVID-19: Here’s how to get vaccinated in British Columbia

• COVID-19: Find your neighborhood on our interactive map of cases and vaccination rates in BC

• COVID-19: Fear of needles? Here’s how to get over your fear and get vaccinated

• COVID-19: Five things to know about the spread of the P1 variant in BC

• COVID-19: Here’s where to get tested in Metro Vancouver

• BC COVID-19 Symptom Self-Assessment Tool

LATEST NEWS on COVID-19 in BC

Fraser Health Declares COVID-19 Outbreak at Cherington Place

Fraser Health has declared a COVID-19 outbreak at Cherington Place in Surrey.

Article content

A resident and a staff member tested positive for the virus.

Cherington Place is a long term care facility in Surrey owned and operated by Belvedere Seniors Living.

The resident and the staff member are in isolation at their homes, according to health officials.

Fraser Health says it is working with the site to identify anyone who may have been exposed and is taking steps to protect the health of all staff, residents and families.

Mandatory Vaccinations for Staff Up to School Boards, Says Horgan

Prime Minister John Horgan says the vaccinations mandates for British Columbia school workers are a last resort and the elected administrators of the board know what is needed for their communities rather than the province enforcing such decisions.

Article content

Parent groups and the BC Federation of Teachers have asked all school districts to introduce a COVID-19 vaccine mandate in the absence of a provincial order, while the New Westminster board of education has asked for a legal opinion on the mandatory vaccination.

Horgan says he understands the anxiety parents feel about protecting their children and making sure governments and school boards are doing everything they can to keep children safe.

An independent group looking at the pandemic in British Columbia released a new model, which says cases among children rose sharply at health authorities in Fraser, Interior, and Vancouver Island, accounting for nearly half of the unvaccinated residents of the British Columbia. Province.

It says that COVID-19 infections among those under 12 are higher than at any other time in the pandemic and predicts that at least 20 percent will have had the virus within two years.

Article content

-The Canadian press

Health officials report 624 new cases and four deaths

On Thursday, BC health officials reported 624 new COVID-19 cases for a total of 191,748 cases in the province since the pandemic began.

There are 5,929 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 183,406 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 373 people are hospitalized and 132 in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.

The new cases include:

Health officials also reported four new deaths Thursday for a total of 1,996.

Article content

Immunity Weaken Faster in Men Than Women Within Months of Second Pfizer Injection, Study Finds

The immunity provided by the COVID-19 vaccine from partners Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE weakens significantly within months, and men have less protection than women, according to research supporting the use of booster doses.

Protective antibodies declined continuously for six months after the second dose of the vaccine was given, according to a study of about 5,000 Israeli healthcare workers published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. Levels fell first at a sharp pace and then at a more moderate pace.

Researchers around the world are trying to identify the critical threshold of antibodies necessary to prevent coronavirus infection, serious illness and death, said Gili Regev-Yochay, one of the study’s authors. Such studies will help assess risk levels for various groups and the measures needed to protect them, the researcher said.

Article content

Antibody levels were found to be lower in older people than younger people and in immunosuppressed people compared to the healthy population, according to the study from the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan. The men’s antibody counts were lower than those of the women both at their peak and at the end of the study.

Research shows why there are progressive infections in people who have received two doses of the vaccine, Regev-Yochay said at an online news conference. The United States, which has restricted its booster recommendation to the elderly and other vulnerable groups, will likely follow Israel’s decision to offer a third dose to the entire population, he said.

-Bloomberg News

BC MAP OF WEEKLY COVID CASE RECORDS, VACCINATION RATES

Find out how your neighborhood is doing in the battle against COVID-19 with the latest number of new cases, positivity rates, and vaccination rates:

Article content

BC VACCINES FOLLOW-UP

LOCAL RESOURCES for information on COVID-19

Here is a host of information and landing pages for COVID-19 from various health and government agencies.

• BC COVID-19 Symptom Self-Assessment Tool

• Vancouver Coastal Health – Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Information

• HealthLink BC – Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information Page

• BC Center for Disease Control – Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)

• Government of Canada – Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19): Outbreak Update

• World Health Organization – Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak

–With files from The Canadian Press