N.B. COVID-19 roundup: 13 new cases push active total to 110, most cases under 40 and unvaxxed

New Brunswick has 13 new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday, pushing the province's active case count to 110, the COVID-19 dashboard shows.

Twelve of the new cases are in the Moncton region, Zone 1, which has 77 per cent of the province's active cases, including outbreaks at a 50-bed nursing home and a daycare, and a lengthy list of potential public exposures.

The other new case is in the Bathurst region, Zone 6.

One person is now in hospital because of the respiratory disease. Public Health did not indicate the zone in which the person is located.

The new totals come 17 days after the province moved to the green phase of COVID-19 recovery and lifted all restrictions.

The vast majority of COVID-19 infections are in unvaccinated people under the age of 40, Public Health said in a news release.

This age group still lags behind others in getting first and second doses of COVID-19 vaccines, it said.

Less than 60 per cent of New Brunswickers under 40 are fully vaccinated.

Meanwhile, a total of 71.5 per cent of New Brunswickers aged 12 and older are fully vaccinated, up from 71.4 on Monday, while 83.4 per cent have received at least one dose, unchanged from Monday.

"Public Health is encouraging those under 40 who have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine at least 28 days ago, and have not yet booked their second, to do so as soon as possible," Dr. Cristin Muecke, deputy chief medical officer of health, said in a statement.

Anyone age 12 or older is eligible to get a vaccine and can get their second shot 28 days after their first.

Several community vaccination clinics continue to accept walk-ins. A list is available online.

People can also book an appointment online through a Horizon or Vitalité health network clinic or through a participating pharmacy.

They are asked to bring their Medicare card, a signed consent form and, for those receiving a second dose, a copy of the record of immunization they received after getting their first dose.

Breakdown of new cases

Here is a breakdown of the 13 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed Tuesday:

Moncton region, Zone 1, 12 cases:

• Five people age 19 or under
• Two people 20 to 29
• Two people 30 to 39
• A person 50 to 59
• A person 60 to 69
• A person 80 to 89

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

Bathurst region, Zone 6, one case:

• A person 40 to 49

This case is a contact of a previously confirmed case.

New Brunswick has had 2,543 confirmed cases of COVID-19 during the pandemic. There have been 2,386 recoveries so far and 46 COVID-related deaths.

A total of 394,488 COVID tests have been conducted, including 1,408 on Monday.

Update on nursing home, daycare

An update on the outbreak declared Monday at the nursing home in the Moncton region, Zone 1, is expected Wednesday, says the Department of Health.

Two cases have been confirmed to date at Forest Dale Home in Riverside-Albert — a resident and then an employee.

Mass testing of the 49 current residents and all employees was conducted Monday by the provincial rapid outbreak management team. Those results are due Wednesday morning, department spokesperson Bruce Macfarlane told CBC News.

New Brunswick does not release the COVID-19 vaccination rates of staff at individual long-term care facilities, but the rates by zone and provincewide have improved significantly in recent months.

More than 76 per cent of long-term care staff across the province have had at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, while nearly 57 per cent are fully vaccinated, said Department of Social Development spokesperson Jeremy Trevors.

As of Tuesday, only 12 of 547 facilities have fewer than 50 per cent of employees vaccinated with at least one dose, he said.

In Zone 1, that works out to roughly three of 135 care homes, or two per cent. The Edmundston region, Zone 4, has the highest percentage of homes with fewer than half their staff vaccinated with at least one dose, at seven per cent, or about four of 58.

In May, Premier Blaine Higgs sought a legal opinion on whether the province could make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for health-care workers, including long-term care workers.

In the end, the province decided to make COVID-19 testing mandatory for some long-term care workers. The social development minister cited their "unacceptable" low vaccination rates. At that time, more than 1,000 workers had not yet received one dose.

Unvaccinated long-term care home workers who work in a facility where fewer than half the staff have received at least one dose of a vaccine must take a rapid COVID-19 test every other day.

Trevors did not immediately respond to a request for test results or how many workers refused testing.

Another round of testing at Forest Dale Home is expected to take place on Thursday, said Macfarlane.

Additional cleaning staff have also been sent to assist at the home, he said.

The Owl and Friends Learning Tree daycare in Moncton remains closed until Aug. 24 after four cases of COVID-19 were  confirmed.

Macfarlane did not say when the first case was detected but did say the daycare was shut down by Public Health last Friday.

Macfarlane declined to say whether the positive cases involve children or staff, citing privacy.

The daycare is licensed for 37 spaces, including infant preschool and school-age children, according to Department of Education and Early Childhood Development website.

He did not respond to a request for comment about what is being done regarding isolation, contact tracing or testing.

New Zone 1 exposures include Dumont ER

Public Health has added new potential COVID-19 exposure warnings to the already lengthy list for the Moncton region, including the emergency room at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre.

Anyone who was at the ER at 330 Université Ave., in Moncton on Aug. 14 between 2 p.m. and 3:30 a.m. may have been exposed to the coronavirus.

The other possible exposure sites include:

• Aug. 9, 10, 11, 13, and 14 between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. – Action Car and Truck Accessories, 200 Horsman Rd., Moncton
• Aug. 12 between 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. – Our Place, 97 Cameron St., Moncton
• Aug. 9, 10, 11, and 12 between 6:45 a.m. and 2 p.m. – Hillsborough Irving, 2799 Main St, Hillsborough
• Aug.11 between 7:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. – New Life Pentecostal Church, 65 Dawson Rd, Weldon
• Aug. 11 between 12 a.m. and 2 a.m. – Ioob Lounge Ltd., 127 Robinson St., Moncton

Public Health has also identified a possible exposure in the Saint John region, Zone 2:

• Aug.9 – Three Bears Campground,12049 Rte. 114, Penobsquis

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

The full list of possible exposures is updated regularly and is available on the government's website.

Delta variant confirmed in Listuguj First Nation

The highly contagious COVID-19 delta variant has found its way to Listuguj First Nation, the Listuguj Mi'gmaq Government announced Tuesday.

Quebec Public Health confirmed to Listuguj Community Health Services that the variant driving the increase in cases across the country and the fourth wave is present in the regional county municipality of Avignon, which includes the Mi'gmaw community.

Listuguj is located across from Campbellton, where elementary and high school students attend school.

The announcement comes just four days after the community suffered its first suspected COVD-related death. A person between the ages of 30 and 35 died Friday.

"It is believed that this is a result of complications due to COVID-19," the government said at the time, adding the person was unvaccinated.

"We wish to remind our community residents to continue to follow the general safety precautions for the Quebec Alert Level 1 (Green) for COVID-19," the government said in a Facebook post Tuesday.

"It is important to continue to maintain physical distancing, wear a face mask, wash your hands frequently, [practise] respiratory etiquette and find an alternative greeting."

There were two active cases of COVID19 in Listuguj as of Friday.

A mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic was held in the community on Friday and Saturday, after weeks of planning.

A total of 161 community residents received either their first or second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, according to the Facebook post.

Another mobile vaccination clinic will be scheduled for early October, it said.

Atlantic COVID roundup

Nova Scotia confirmed one new case of COVID-19 on Tuesday and has 22 active cases.

Newfoundland and Labrador no longer provides COVID updates on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There were nine active cases as of Monday.  

Prince Edward Island confirmed one new case and has eight active cases.

Previous exposure notices

Public Health has identified a positive case of COVID-19 in a person who may have been infectious while on the following flight:

• Aug. 11 – Air Canada Flight 8773 – from Montreal to Saint John, which departed at 9:14 a.m.
• Aug. 7 – Air Canada Flight 8904 – from Montreal to Moncton, departed at 8:03 p.m.

Public Health has also identified places in New Brunswick where people may have been exposed to the coronavirus during the past two weeks.

Moncton region:

• Aug. 9, 10, and 13 between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. – Deware's Service Centre, 402 Elmwood Dr., Moncton

• Aug. 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. – Oulton College, 55 Lutz St.

• Aug. 12 between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. – St. Louis Bar & Grill, 1405 Mountain Rd.

• Aug. 12 between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. – H&M, 477 Paul St., Dieppe

• Aug. 11 between 6:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. – Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre diagnostic imaging waiting room, 330 University Ave.

• Aug. 11 between 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. – Costco, 140 Granite Drive, Moncton

• Aug. 9, 10, and 11 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. – Corn Crib, 337 Mountain Dr., Moncton

• Aug. 10 between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. – Chris Rock Tavern, 48 Albert St.

• Aug. 8 between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. - Apostolic Lighthouse Church, 332 Bayley Rd., Riverview

• Aug. 7 between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. – Navigators Pub, 190 Robinson Court

• Aug. 7 between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m., Aug. 8 between 6 p.m. and 4 a.m. – Wise Guys Pub, 176 Robinson St.

• Aug. 7 between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. – Old Triangle Irish Alehouse, 751 Main St., Moncton

• Aug. 5 between 12 p.m. and 4 p.m. – Costco, 140 Granite Dr., Moncton

• Aug. 1 between 1 p.m and 3 p.m. - Montana's, 225 Mapleton Rd., Moncton

• Aug. 1 between 6:30 p.m.  and 8:30 p.m. - Apostolic Lighthouse Church, 332 Bayley Rd., Riverview

The province also shared possible sites of COVID-19 exposure in the Saint John, Fredericton, and Miramichi regions

Saint John region, Zone 2:

• August 4 and 5 – Three Bears Campground, 12049 Rte. 114, Penobsquis

• Aug. 4 between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. – Atlantic Superstore, 44 Lower Cove Rd., Sussex

• Aug. 2 between 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. – JJ's Restaurant, 40941 Rte. 1, Sussex

Fredericton region, Zone 3:

• Aug. 12 between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. – Sobeys, 1180 Prospect St., Fredericton

• Aug. 12 between 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. – Costco Gas Bar and Costco Store, 25 Wayne Squibb Blvd., Fredericton

• Aug. 11 between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., Aug. 12 between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. – Atlantic Superstore, 350 Connell St., Woodstock

• Aug. 10 between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. – Coast Tire, 283 Connell St., Woodstock

• Aug. 9 between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., Tim Horton's, 667 Main St., Woodstock

• Aug. 8 between 10:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. - Grafton Baptist Church, 48 Saunders St., Grafton

• Aug. 6 between 8:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. – Sobeys, 370 Connell Rd, Woodstock

• Aug. 7 between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. – Dolan's Pub, 349 King St.

Miramichi region, Zone 7:

• Aug. 6 between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. – Ultramar Truck Stop, 11365 Rte 11, Napan

What to do if you have a symptom

People concerned they might have COVID-19 can take a self-assessment test online.

Public Health says symptoms of the illness have included a fever above 38 C, a new or worsening cough, sore throat, runny nose, headache, a new onset of fatigue, and difficulty breathing.

In children, symptoms have also included purple markings on the fingers and toes.

People with one of those symptoms should stay at home, call 811 or their doctor and follow instructions.