Two additional COVID-19 deaths in Nova Scotia

Today, February 17, Nova Scotia is reporting 10 new hospital admissions and five discharges.

Nova Scotia is also reporting two deaths related to COVID-19:

• a man in his 50s in Eastern Zone

• a man in his 70s in Eastern Zone.

“It is with heavy hearts we report the passing of two more Nova Scotians to COVID-19,” said Premier Tim Houston. “This is an extremely sad time for their families and friends. I want to extend my deepest condolences to all those who are grieving the loss of their loved one.”

There are 66 people in hospital who were admitted due to COVID-19 and are receiving specialized care in a COVID-19 designated unit.

That includes 11 people in ICU.

The age range of those in hospital is 13 to 93 years old.

The median age is 64, and the median length of stay of people admitted to hospital due to COVID-19 is 6.3 days.

Of the 66 people in hospital, 62 were admitted during the Omicron wave.

“This virus has taken the life of two more Nova Scotians and my thoughts and prayers are with their family and friends,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s Chief Medical Officer of Health. “We know COVID-19 can be a serious disease, and we all play a role in how it impacts our communities. It is important we continue to take care of one another by getting vaccinated and following the public health guidance.”

The vaccination status of those in hospital is:

• 22 (33.3 per cent) people have had a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine

• 24 (36.4 per cent) are fully vaccinated (two doses)

• 1 (1.5 per cent) is partially vaccinated

• 19 (28.8 per cent) are unvaccinated.

It is important to note that less than 10 per cent of Nova Scotians are unvaccinated.

There are also two other groups of people in hospital related to COVID-19:

• 135 people who were identified as positive upon arrival at hospital but were admitted for another medical reason, or were admitted for COVID-19 but no longer require specialized care

• 166 people who contracted COVID-19 after being admitted to hospital.

Vaccine Coverage:

As of February 16, 2,192,568 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered.

Of those, 91.6 per cent of Nova Scotians have received their first dose, and 85.9 per cent have received their second dose.

As well, 61 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose, and 1.3 per cent have booked a booster dose appointment.

Cases and Testing:

On February 16, Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) labs completed 2,015 tests.

An additional 242 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are being reported.

There are 80 cases in Central Zone, 67 cases in Eastern Zone, 50 cases in Northern Zone and 45 cases in Western Zone.

As of today, there are an estimated 2,535 active cases of COVID-19 in Nova Scotia.