To date, more than 1.3 million people in British Columbia have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose.
As of April 21st, 230,029 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the Island Health region.
On Tuesday, Island Health, along with the First Nations Health Authority, announced that 30 per cent of the region’s adult population have now been vaccinated with their first dose.
Roughly 25 per cent of the Canadian population is now vaccinated against the virus — which equates to about 10.5 million people.
While the number of vaccines administered climbs, so do the number of new COVID-19 cases; so while there is light at the end of the tunnel, both the provincial and federal governments are encouraging those vaccinated to continue to follow local guidelines and wear a mask until more of the population is fully vaccinated.
The number of active cases on Vancouver Island has begun to decrease after peaking to nearly 500 cases. As of the publication, there are 307 active cases in the Island Health region.
Additionally, as of this publication, there are currently 188 active cases on the southern part of the island, 84 cases on the mid-island, and 35 active cases in the northern region.
On Monday, the province announced that people born in 1981 and earlier (40+) can get the AstraZeneca vaccine at eligible pharmacies across BC, including Vancouver Island.
According to the BC COVID-19 dashboard, 13,659 doses of AstraZeneca have been administered in the Island Health region.
Previously, BC had been only administering AstraZeneca doses to people aged 55 to 65 while the vaccine was under review for its potential connection to extremely rare blood clots.
People 30 years and older are now eligible to register for a Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine through the province.
Appointments are now being made for people 63 and older, Indigenous people 18 and older, and people who have received a letter indicating they are clinically vulnerable.
As of this week, all residents of BC, 18 and older, will be able to register for their COVID-19, see eligibility, and register here.
To reach herd immunity, 70% of the population will have to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The more people in a community who are vaccinated, the harder it is for a disease to spread.
In partnership with @fnha 30% of our region's adult population have now been vaccinated (first dose).
Huge thanks to everyone involved in making this happen.https://t.co/NCWskfAAiI #COVID19IslandHealth pic.twitter.com/cd1Q4dthd7— Island Health (@VanIslandHealth) April 20, 2021
In an email to Victoria Buzz, a spokesperson with Island Health said they remain confident that all eligible Island Health adults will be offered their first dose of the vaccine by July 1st.
On Wednesday, BC health officials reported 862 new cases of COVID-19. There have been 121,751 cases in BC since the pandemic began, with 4,395 of those cases in the Island Health region.
