Dr. Jennifer Russell. (CPAC)
The province had no new cases of COVID-19 to report on Friday.
The announcement was made at Friday’s press briefing, during which the province’s recovery status was moved into the next phase of the “yellow” stage.
Friday’s COVID announcement officially marks two days with no new cases to report in New Brunswick.
Dr. Jennifer Russell said the province has the testing capacity to test anyone experiencing one symptom of COVID-19.
“We want to confirm there’s an absence of community spread at this time,” Dr. Russell said. “It’s giving us a level of confidence, but it also gives confidence to all communities that the testing is available when and if they need it.”
The new testing threshold means anyone experiencing one of the following symptoms is eligible to get tested by calling 811:
- fever above 38°C or signs of fever (such as chills)
- a new cough or worsening chronic cough
- sore throat
- runny nose
- headache
- a new onset of fatigue
- a new onset of muscle pain
- diarrhea
- loss of sense of taste or loss of sense of smell
- in children, purple markings on the fingers or toes
With the tragedy of two fatalities and an outbreak in the Zone 5 Campbellton region, many are afraid of similar outbreaks in the province.
Dr. Russell says new cases of the virus are inevitable as long as there is no vaccine.
“New cases are not a sign of failure, they’re a reality,” she said. “We need to be ready for them.”
She added that each case in the province provides a learning opportunity for the medical community.
“Each and every time we’re dealing with new cases, we’re learning more at the regional level and at the provincial level,” said Russell.
Zone 5 will need to wait before joining the other regions of the province in the yellow phase of economic recovery. If the outbreak doesn’t worsen this week the region will be able to rejoin the yellow phase of recovery.
