**** HEALTH/WELLNESS Media Release
COVID-19 Weekly Data Report for June 16, 2022
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Nova Scotia is reporting 1,950 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19, 28 hospitalizations and 10 deaths during the seven-day period ending June 13. The number of new PCR-positive tests is slightly higher than in last week’s report. However, hospital admissions and the number of deaths reported have decreased.
Starting this week, the number of lab-confirmed cases includes people who have COVID-19 for the second time or more. Reinfections were not previously included in data reports because the number was small. But with the emergence of the Omicron variant, reinfections have become more frequent, and that is why Nova Scotia will now include them in the reported lab-confirmed cases. This change is part of the reason for the increased case numbers this week.
“Since the beginning of the Omicron wave, there have been 215 people who have tested positive 90 days or more after a previous positive PCR test result,” said Dr. Shelley Deeks, Nova Scotia’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health. “At this point, many Nova Scotians have tested positive for COVID-19, so the chances of reinfection become more probable; that is why we have shifted our reporting to include the number of reinfections in our weekly case count.”
People 70 years of age and older continue to be at highest risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19. Since the start of the Omicron waves December 8, 2021, the median age of hospitalizations is 71, and the median age of people who have died is 81. Eight (80 per cent) of the COVID-19 deaths reported this week were people 70 years of age or older.
The data show that age is the biggest risk factor for severe disease and that vaccines are continuing to work. The risk of hospitalization is nearly 11 times higher for people 70 and older and the risk of death about 112 times higher when compared to those under 50. Vaccine-related immunity wanes more quickly in people 70 and older, which is why a second booster dose was recommended this spring. Most adults under 70 are still well protected against severe illness by their two-dose primary series plus one booster.
Nova Scotians who are not up to date on recommended vaccines are still encouraged to receive all doses for which they are eligible.
To date, 65.7 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received at least one booster dose, and 71,557 people have received a second.
The weekly COVID-19 epidemiologic summary is prepared for the Chief Medical Officer of Health and his team to inform public health’s management of the pandemic. It tracks weekly trends and is focused on monitoring for severe outcomes in key populations. The full report is available here: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/alerts-notices/#epidemiologic-summaries
Quick Facts:
— reinfection is defined as a PCR positive result 90 days or more after a previous positive PCR result
Additional Resources:
COVID-19 public dashboard: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/204d6ed723244dfbb763ca3f913c5cad
Report a positive COVID-19 test to be linked to public health support, including virtual care and treatment for those who are eligible: https://c19hc.nshealth.ca/self-report/
