N.B. reports 16 more COVID-19 deaths, decrease in hospitalizations and new cases

COVID-19 has killed 16 more New Brunswickers, raising the pandemic death toll to 913, and all of the province's cases are now the Omicron variant XBB, the latest monthly update from the province shows.

One of the people who died was under 50 — the youngest age category provided, and the other 15 were all aged 70 or older, according to the COVIDWatch report.

One death occurred in December, three in March, seven in April, three in May and two in June, according to the Department of Health.

Deaths are subject to an average two-month lag in reporting from date of death to the registration of death, the report says.

Twenty-three people were newly admitted to hospital because of the virus between May 28 and June 24. Three of them require intensive care. That's down from 39 and four, respectively, a month ago.

"COVID-19 hospitalizations showed an initial decrease followed by stabilization," for an average of 5.8 hospitalizations per week, the report says.

The two regional health authorities report they have 24 hospitalized COVID patients, two of whom require intensive care, as of Saturday. That includes people who were either admitted because of COVID or initially admitted for another reason and later tested positive for the virus.

Last month, Horizon and Vitalité said they had 50 people hospitalized for or with COVID, including three in ICU.

100% XBB

There were 211 new cases of COVID confirmed through 2,492 PCR (polymerase chain reaction) lab tests during the reporting period.

That's a positivity rate of 8.5 per cent, down from 10.7 per cent last month, when 294 new cases of COVID confirmed through 2,748 PCR tests. The positivity rate serves as an indicator of community transmission.

"The number of confirmed cases slightly decreased while percent positivity remained relatively stable throughout the reporting period," for an average of 52.8 cases per week, the report says.

An additional 96 people self-reported testing positive on a rapid test in the past month, according to the Department of Health, down from 168.

Of the 63 random positive PCR samples sent for genetic sequencing between May 31 and June 16, 100 per cent were XBB, the COVIDWatch report shows.

The report does not provide a further breakdown of sublineages, such as  XBB.1.16, which has caused a surge in India, or XBB.1.5, which has been described as immune evasive and "the most transmissible" subvariant yet.

CBC requested a breakdown from the Department of Health, but spokesperson Sean Hatchard reiterated that the province isn't regularly releasing detailed breakdowns "as no other province in Atlantic Canada is doing that, and as there have been more than 100 genetic sequences of COVID-19 detected in the province since the beginning of the pandemic."

No summer projections released

CBC requested an interview with Dr. Jennifer Russell, the chief medical officer of health, to find out what the province's COVID-19 modelling shows for deaths, hospitalizations and cases for the coming months, and how those numbers compare to previous pandemic summers, but did not receive a response.

In an emailed statement, the Department of Health spokesperson did not respond directly the questions.

"Although the number of positive cases, hospitalizations and deaths have been relatively stable or declining since January, it's important to note that COVID-19 is circulating in the province and is still a significant health risk, especially to those who are immunocompromised," Hatchard said.

Asked about the department's advice regarding protective measures, Hatchard said it "continues to recommend that New Brunswickers assess their own risk levels when determining the precautions they should use in their day-to-day lives to reduce their risks of infection.

"Vaccination is our best defence against COVID-19 by reducing the risk of serious complication and hospitalization," he added.

Vaccination rates stalled

COVID-19 vaccination rates have remained largely unchanged over the past month, according to figures provided by the Department of Health.

A total of 749 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered as of Saturday — a 27 per cent drop from the 1,031 doses reported in May.

The breakdown includes:

• First dose — 91.1 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers (116 doses).
• Second dose — 85.9 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers (108 doses).
• First booster — 54.8 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers (151 doses).
• Second booster — 30.7 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers (374 doses).

The next COVIDWatch report will be issued on July 25.

Horizon and Vitalité's first monthly updates

Horizon has 20 people hospitalized for or with COVID, according to its first monthly COVID update, down from 31 in May. The number of people who require intensive care remains unchanged at two.

Horizon and Vitalité both announced they were moving to monthly updates instead of weekly on May 30, about a month after the province cut back its COVID updates to monthly, from weekly.

The regional breakdown of the Horizon hospitalizations includes:

• Saint John region, Zone 2 — Seven patients.
• Fredericton region, Zone 3 —  Nine patients.
• Miramichi region, Zone 7 —  Four patients.

Vitalité has four COVID patients, none of whom require intensive care, its dashboard shows. A month ago, Vitalité had 19 COVID patients, including one in ICU.

Three of Vitalité's patients are at the Chaleur Regional Hospital in the Bathurst region, Zone 6, while the other one is at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre in the Moncton region, Zone 1.

Fourteen Horizon health-care workers are off the job after testing positive for COVID, down from 19.

Vitalité has three infected health-care workers, down from 14.

There are no active COVID outbreaks on any Horizon hospital units. Vitalité has no outbreaks either, as of June 12, according to its website.