More people have now recovered from COVID-19 in Alberta than are still fighting the coronavirus, though four more deaths in the past 24 hours are a reminder of how serious the pandemic remains.
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw reported Monday that only 70 new cases were added in the previous day. Updated information from Alberta Health shows nine of those are in Brooks – where the total number of cases is now 998 – and one more in Medicine Hat (33 total cases). Only 469 of the Brooks cases are linked to the JBS meat packing plant, prompting Hinshaw to warn about the dangers of stigmatizing anyone who works there.
“When people are stigmatized or targeted, it blocks our collective ability to control the spread as people may fear getting tested or talking to public health,” said Hinshaw. “We should be supporting people who are in this situation, not stigmatizing them.”
Alberta has 5,836 cases, 2,790 active but 2,942 recovered. Nine new deaths were announced – bringing that total to 104 – though five of them were deaths reclassified from the past two weeks to be COVID-related. One of the new deaths is from Brooks, which now has five deaths.
There are now 235 recovered cases in Brooks and 21 in Medicine Hat.
Hinshaw announced that testing is now expanded to include anyone who’s a close contact of someone with a confirmed case of COVID-19, regardless of whether or not they have symptoms. Anyone with any in a long list of symptoms – fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, stuffy or runny nose, headache, fatigue, gastrointestinal symptoms, loss of smell or taste, or pinkeye – can also now be tested. The online self-assessment tool at alberta.ca/covid19 is still the recommended way to get approved for a test, though calling 811 is also an option.
