Northern Health saw no movement in the number of positive COVID-19 cases from the weekend.
The regional authority remains at 65 confirmed cases, including 64 recoveries, as reported today (June 15) by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix.
B.C.'s grand total now sits at 2,745 positive cases since the virus hit the west coast after 36 new ones were recorded since Friday's (June 12) update.
There were also no new deaths over the weekend, keeping that total at 168, and no community outbreaks.
Despite the encouraging numbers, Dr. Henry said the precautions, like restrictions on gatherings of more than 50 people, will have to remain in place “for months to come.”
The one exception to the general rule is anti-racism demonstrations, like the ones that have taken place across B.C. over the last two weeks.
Henry actually appeared to encourage such demonstrations at her today's news conference.
"It's very important that we put our voices out there for things like anti-racism and have our voices heard, because it is an incredibly important issue, even in the middle of a pandemic," she said.
"But there's ways to do that safely. We have seen people who have been very effective at doing that in a safe way, and that is what I encourage: Small numbers. You can be very impactful with many small numbers."
Of the number of provincial cases, just 182 remain active, which also includes 13 people being treated in hospital and four in intensive care.
This means 2,395, or just over 87 per cent of all cases, have recovered since being tested positive.
In Northern Health, no one is listed in hospital or in critical care with COVID-19.
"It may almost feel like back to normal," Henry said.
"It is easy, sometimes...to lose sight of the fact that this pandemic is far from over. There continues to be no effective treatment and the virus will continue in our communities for many months to come. Part of the reason that we have so few cases in the province is because we have been doing our part to ensure that we are taking those measures to keep this virus from spreading quickly."
- with files from Nelson Bennett, Business In Vancouver
