Dr. Jennifer Russell, the chief medical officer of health for New Brunswick, addresses the provinces on Feb. 8, 2021. (Image: CPAC video capture)
All of New Brunswick will be moving to the Yellow level of pandemic recovery on Sunday (March 7) at midnight, according to Public Health.
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Jennifer Russell has confirmed the change as long as COVID-19 case numbers remain low.
Today (March 5), the province is reporting four new cases of COVID-19 as follows:
- Miramichi region Zone 7 has three new cases.
- Fredericton region Zone 3 has one new case.
The province now has 33 active cases of the virus. Three individuals are in the hospital with two in the ICU.
New Brunswick’s health minister said they are considering adjustments to the COVID-19 vaccine rollout plan to get more people vaccinated sooner.
It comes after the approval of the AstraZeneca vaccine, of which New Brunswick will get 10,000 doses in March, and new recommendations concerning intervals between doses.
“Public Health will participate in meetings with the all-party cabinet committee on COVID-19 and cabinet next week to discuss what that will look like and we will share that plan with you once it is finalized,” said Shephard.
On Thursday, Premier Blaine Higgs told reporters that he hopes every New Brunswick can receive a first dose of vaccine by the end of June.
Shephard said the province has administered nearly 34,000 doses of vaccine to date and around 12,000 people are fully vaccinated.
She said they continue to focus on priority groups, including the province’s 11,000 long-term care residents and 27,000 health-care workers.
To date, 7,500 long-term care residents have received at least one dose and 2,400 are fully vaccinated. For health-care workers, more than 13,000 have received at least one dose and 10,000 are full vaccinated.
Shephard said Public Health will also have more details soon about the role pharmacists and other health-care providers will play in administering vaccines.
“Right now, New Brunswick is in a good place,” said Shephard. “Our vaccines are being administered as quickly as possible and we are seeing a low number of active cases and low daily case numbers.”
“But we still have to remain vigilant and follow the rules. We have seen how quickly things can change both here and in nearby provinces, especially with the presence of the variant.”
MORE TO COME…
