More than 10,000 N.B. children registered for pediatric COVID-19 vaccine

HALIFAX, N.S. -

More than 10,000 appointments have been booked for children in New Brunswick aged five to 11 to receive their first dose of the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine.

Appointments became available on Tuesday and, because of the high demand, additional clinics for children are being held in Zone 1 (Moncton region) and Zone 3 (Fredericton region). The government says clinics will be added in other areas as necessary.

CASE COUNT

New Brunswick reported 85 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, along with 79 recoveries, bringing the total number of active cases in the province to 793.

According to the province, 29 of the new cases are in the Moncton region (Zone 1), and include:

• nine people 19 and under;
• three people 20-29;
• six people 30-39;
• three people 40-49;
• four people 50-59;
• a person 60-69;
• a person 70-79; and
• two people 80-89.

Eighteen cases are under investigation and 11 are contacts of previously confirmed cases.

The 22 new cases in the Saint John region (Zone 2) are as follows:

• four people 19 and under;
• five people 20-29;
• two people 30-39;
• three people 40-49;
• three people 50-59;
• two people 60-69; and
• three people 70-79.

Eight cases are contacts of previously confirmed cases and 14 are under investigation.

The 12 new cases in the Fredericton region (Zone 3) are as follows:

• three people 20-29;
• four people 40-49;
• a person 50-59;
• a person 60-69;
• a person 70-79; and
• two people 90 and over.

Eight cases are under investigation and four are contacts of previously confirmed cases.

The two cases in the Campbellton region (Zone 5) are as follows:

• a person 20-29; and
• a person 50-59.

Both are contacts of previously confirmed cases.

The three cases in Bathurst region (Zone 6) are as follows:

• a person 19 and under; and
• two people 20-29.

The three cases are under investigation.

The 17 new cases Miramichi region (in Zone 7) are as follows:

• 10 people 19 and under;
• three people 20-29;
• three people 30-39; and
• a person 50-59.

Thirteen cases are contacts of previously confirmed cases and four are under investigation.

Additional information is available on the COVID-19 dashboard.

CASE BREAKDOWN

New Brunswick has had 8,172 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Of those, 7,255 cases have recovered and 123 people have died.

There are a total of 61 people hospitalized, 16 are in an intensive care unit. Of the 61, two patients are at the Saint John Regional Hospital, where Horizon Health Network declared an outbreak Friday in the orthopedic surgery and internal medicine units.

Twenty per cent of those in hospital are unvaccinated, 12 percent are partially vaccinated, and five per cent are fully vaccinated.

There is currently one person 19 or under in the hospital.

To date, 555,642 COVID-19 tests has been conducted in New Brunswick.

“Although not detected yet in Canada, the news about the Omicron variant of concern is a reminder about how important it is to follow public health measures,” said Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health, in a press release Saturday.

“They are small things for each of us to do – like distancing, wearing a mask, washing our hands, staying home when sick and getting vaccinated – but collectively they make a huge difference.”

Hospital outbreaks difficult for families

Rachel Mallais’ brother had to be admitted to the Moncton Hospital’s neurology intensive care unit on Tuesday – the same day a COVID-19 outbreak was declared at two units of the hospital.

On Wednesday, that outbreak grew to four.

Mallais is a doctor herself, and works at a different hospital. She knows how serious the virus can be.

“Because he’s in the ICU, he’s allowed to have one visitor, which is his wife,” Mallais said from her home in Moncton. “So there’s concern. I kind of explained to her today that the units that are in the restricted area are not far away. Two of those units are on the same floor.”

Her brother has been tested, and is negative, and will likely be tested again this week.

She says as much as she wants to see him, she knows visitor restrictions are there for a reason.

“As much as it’s hard for me not to be able to be there and assessing him with my own eyes, I know he’s in good hands with the staff that are taking care of him,” she said.

Mallais says as a healthcare worker, the virus is always at the back of her mind. She’s seen what it can do and wishes everyone understood what it can do.

“It’s hard to read or hear from people who think that this is just a hoax or a joke,” she said. “It gets very depressing for us to hear that, and then when you have to deal with your loved one in there, it makes it hard – it makes it very hard.”

CASE LOCATIONS

The number of cases are broken down by New Brunswick’s seven health zones:

• Zone 1 – Moncton region: 2,495 confirmed cases (303 active case)
• Zone 2 – Saint John region: 1,076 confirmed cases (171 active case)
• Zone 3 – Fredericton region: 1,623 confirmed cases (179 active cases)
• Zone 4 – Edmundston region: 1,462 confirmed cases (3 active cases)
• Zone 5 – Campbellton region: 693 confirmed cases (7 active cases)
• Zone 6 – Bathurst region: 319 confirmed cases (10 active case)
• Zone 7 – Miramichi region: 504 confirmed cases (120 active case)

VACCINATION UPDATE

The province says that 88 per cent of eligible New Brunswickers over 12 years of age are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 93.6 per cent have received their first dose of a vaccine.

In total, 1,264,214 vaccine doses have been administered in New Brunswick.

Isolation Reminder

Any household in New Brunswick with a positive case of COVID-19 must isolate for 14 days, regardless of vaccination status.

Household members who are fully vaccinated will be able to leave isolation with a day-five negative PCR test. A day-10 PCR test must still be taken to confirm the negative result.

Those who violate the Public Health order to self-isolate face a fine of between $480 and $20,400.

POTENTIAL PUBLIC EXPOSURES

A full list of potential COVID-19 exposure notifications in New Brunswick can be found on the province's website.

Anyone with symptoms of the virus, as well as anyone who has been at the site of a possible public exposure, is urged to request a test online or call Tele-Care at 811 to get an appointment.