N.S. reports 22 COVID-19 deaths, 2nd highest weekly count since pandemic began

Nova Scotia continues to report a high number of COVID-19 deaths in its latest weekly report released Thursday.

While COVID cases appear to be decreasing, data for the latest seven-day period shows the second highest number of COVID deaths reported since the pandemic began.

There were 22 deaths reported to Public Health between April 25 and May 2. The week before had 24 deaths, the highest since the pandemic began.

In that time period, there were also 3,415 new PCR-confirmed cases. The daily case average stands at 488 new cases, down from 777 a week ago and 1,073 the week before.

Dr. Robert Strang, chief medical officer of health for Nova Scotia, said the peak of the sixth wave is past, but the case numbers are still high and COVID is still in the community, along with various other respiratory viruses, including influenza.

He urged people to continue using masks and to stay home when they feel unwell.

"We can't stay restricted in lockdown for a long term," Strang said in a teleconference Thursday. "That has its own set of substantive impacts, so what we're trying to help people understand is how they can engage in a range of activities but still have layers of protection around them and have the information that they can make those sorts of decisions."

The latest numbers show that 29,000 people in Nova Scotia have received their second booster dose of vaccine and 65 per cent of Nova Scotians over 18 have received at least one booster dose.

According to Nova Scotia Health, there are 47 Nova Scotians currently hospitalized due to COVID-19, including 12 in ICU. Another 192 people tested positive when they were admitted to hospital for another health issue. A further 188 patients contracted COVID-19 after admission to the hospital.

There are fewer than five children or youths currently hospitalized due to COVID-19, according to the IWK Health Centre.