.jpg;w=120;h=120;mode=crop){kind=avatar}
The number of new COVID cases in North Vancouver has more than doubled this week, despite having one of the highest vaccination rates in the province.
There were 81 new cases of COVID-19 on the North Shore in the past week – over double the 39 cases reported last week.
All of the increase was in North Vancouver, which reported 72 new cases this week (compared to 28 last week), while West Vancouver reported nine new cases (compared to 11 last week), according to information released by B.C.’s Centre for Disease Control.
Data from the BCCDC shows rates of new infections were up in all areas of the North Shore, with the central area of the District of North Vancouver, including Lynn Valley showing the largest increase. There were 36 cases reported there in the past week and rates of COVID infection went from one daily case per 100,000 people to 16 daily cases per 100,000. Other parts of the District of North Vancouver and the lower part of West Vancouver had rates of seven and eight daily cases per 100,000.
Positivity rates for COVID-19 tests on the North Shore were highest in the same central area of the District of North Vancouver at nine per cent.
The increased case count on the North Shore comes at a time when more cases of highly transmissible new Omicron variant are being reported in B.C. and cases are rising in the Vancouver Coastal Health area for the first time in many weeks.
“What we're seeing is an increase, particularly in Vancouver Coastal Health,” of COVID cases in recent days, said Health Minister Adrian Dix on Wednesday.
Dr. Bonnie Henry, the province's health officer, said Friday the increased number of cases have mostly been connected to parties involving people in their 20s and 30s, both in private homes and at restaurants.
There have been 135 cases of Omicron identified so far in the province, 20 of those in Vancouver Coastal Health. Vancouver Coastal Health has not yet provided information about whether any of those cases have been identified on the North Shore.
Health officials are concerned about the Omicron variant because it appears to be more resistant to vaccines, although so far few vaccinated people have been ending up in hospital with serious illness caused by the variant. Third doses, or booster shots, of vaccines are believed to offer significantly more protection against the variant.
The North Shore has high vaccination rates, with between 90 and 94 per cent of people over age 12 fully vaccinated. A relatively high proportion of older residents have also received booster shots already.
Between 69 and 72 per cent of adults 70 and older and between 28 and 35 per cent of adults 50 and older have received booster doses on the North Shore.
Families on the North Shore have also been among the most enthusiastic in getting their children vaccinated quickly.
Children ages five to 11 in North and West Vancouver are among the most vaccinated in the province, with up to 59 per cent of kids in parts of North Vancouver and 39 per cent of kids in West Vancouver having received their first dose.
In the past week, fully vaccinated people have made up over half of the new cases of COVID. But unvaccinated people still make up over two-thirds of hospitalizations.
