B.C. records 584 new cases of COVID-19 and 7 more deaths

B.C. health officials announced 584 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, the highest number of daily cases since early November.

The province said there are currently 3,458 active cases of people infected with the novel coronavirus in B.C. Seven more people have also died.

A total of 193 people are in hospital, with 77 in intensive care.

On Wednesday, Health Minister Adrian Dix said Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry is "actively" reviewing B.C.'s public health restrictions to decide whether any changes need to be made in light of the Omicron variant's spread.

There were 44 confirmed Omicron cases in B.C. as of Sunday. Henry said there is still a lot of "uncertainty" around the variant's effect on B.C.'s infection curve, but it is known to be highly transmissible and has quickly become the dominant variant of concern in other countries like the U.K.

Overall hospitalizations, which typically lag behind spikes and dips in new cases, were down by 13 per cent Wednesday from last week, when 224 people were in hospital with the disease.

They are also down about 48 per cent from a month ago, when 376 people were in hospital.

The number of patients in intensive care are the same as last week, at 77, but down 33 per cent from 116 last month.

The provincial death toll from COVID-19 is now 2,393 lives lost out of 224,245 confirmed cases to date.

The regional breakdown of new cases is as follows:

• 180 new cases in Vancouver Coastal Health, which has 798 total active cases. 
• 172 new cases in Fraser Health, which has 945 total active cases.
• 109 new cases in Island Health, which has 856 total active cases.
• 92 new cases in Interior Health, which has 641 total active cases.
• 31 new cases in Northern Health, which has 217 total active cases.

There is a total of one active outbreak in assisted living and long-term and acute care. Outbreaks at Ridge Meadows Hospital, in Maple Ridge, and Laurier Manor, in Prince George, have been declared over.

As of Wednesday, 91.6 per cent of those 12 and older in B.C. have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, 88.6 per cent a second dose and 14 per cent a third dose.

When taking into account those five and older, 86.7 per cent of people in B.C. had received a first shot of a COVID-19 vaccine and 82.4 per cent a second dose.

So far, over nine million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, including 4.1 million second doses.

More travel restrictions

The federal government changed its travel guidance earlier Wednesday to officially advise Canadians not to travel outside the country unless it's essential.

"To those who were planning to travel, I say very clearly — now is not the time," said Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos. "The rapid spread of the Omicron variant on a global scale makes us fear the worst."

Duclos said the highly transmissible variant is now spreading in Canadian communities and just about everywhere else in the world.

B.C. Premier John Horgan and Dix said anyone in B.C. with non-essential international travel plans should cancel.

"If it's not necessary, don't go," Dix said during a news conference Wednesday.

"I know this is immensely disappointing and I know many people had been hoping to get a break from British Columbia at this time of year."

Canada's two most populous provinces — Ontario and Quebec — saw more new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday than they have in months. In Ontario, an estimated 80 per cent of new cases Monday were caused by Omicron.

B.C. modelling data released Tuesday suggested a worst-case scenario involving Omicron would be 2,000 new cases per day in the province by the end of December — and a best-case scenario of 1,000 a day by mid-January.