199 COVID19 cases for Thursday

There are 199 new COVID-19 cases in the province, for a BC total of 144,866 cases.

The 7-day average falls to 229 cases per day, the lowest since October 24. It's the first time that BC has 3 days with fewer than 200 new cases since October 18-20.

First dose vaccine % by province for 12+: Nfld 65.2% PEI 60% New Brunswick 66.1% NS 64.8% Quebec 76.8% Ontario 67.4% Manitoba 63.5% Sask 65.5% Alberta 64% BC 68% BC sits second in Canada.

Join Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, and Dr. Bonnie Henry, BC’s provincial health officer, for an update on COVID-19. #CovidBC https://t.co/jFnfffMvjy

— BC Government News (@BCGovNews) June 3, 2021

71.8% of those 18+ in BC have received at least 1 shot of a COVID vaccine and 68.9% of those 12+ have received at least one shot. The province has administered 229,585 second doses, and around 3,104,143 total doses.

2 people have died from COVID19, bringing the total number of deaths to 1709. There are 224 in hospital, done 22. There are 62 in ICU, down 8. There are 2,563 active cases.

British Columbia is trying to ensure people who received Pfizer, get Pfizer as second dose. But it is safe to get either Moderna or Pfizer. The same goes with Moderna first dose. 

There have been spotty supply issues with Moderna. Dr.Henry says there is more Moderna coming at the end of the month. 

Dr. Bonnie Henry says this will start next week. Speaking to the more than 280K that got Astra - "You did make the right choice."

Dr. Henry says as more Moderna and Pfizer became available, AstraZeneca became less important to BC's vaccination plan. There are doses on hand for second doses.

British Columbia will be providing a second AstraZeneca shot 8 weeks after the first shot. This will be done through pharmacy but people are being asked to not call the pharmacy.

This is for people who opt to get Astra. If you should as mRNA dose, it will also be 8 weeks.

Adrian Dix and Dr. Henry - "We are slowly and cautiously moving forward through Step 1, and in the weeks ahead, activities that have been on hold will resume once again. Many are excited about this transition, but there can also be fear and anxiety about what this may mean for you."