18 COVID-19 deaths reported this week

By CityNews Halifax Staff

Nova Scotia is reporting 18 new COVID-19 deaths this week.

There were also 65 new hospitalizations due to the virus.

There's been a bit of a drop in the number of new PCR-confirmed cases, which is down to 3,118 in this week's epidemiologic summary for the seven-day period ending May 9. The week before, the lab processed 3,415 positive PCR tests.

“We're seeing virus activity continue to slow down in Nova Scotia and that's great news, but the number of hospitalizations and deaths remains high – and that's important to keep in mind even as we make our way out of the sixth wave,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Chief Medical Officer of Health for Nova Scotia in a news release. 

However, Nova Scotia is reporting a surge in new flu infections. For the week ending May 7, there were 32 new lab-confirmed cases of influenza A reported, which is more than a quarter of all reported infections during the this year's flu season.

The province says more than 60 per cent of this week's cases were in children 19 and under. 

“The late-spring surge in other respiratory viruses happening across the country right now – including in Nova Scotia – is all the more reason to keep our guard up,” Strang said.

Since the start of the fifth wave (December 8, 2021):

  • the median age of PCR-confirmed cases of COVID-19 is 42
  • the median age of hospitalizations is 71
  • the median age of reported deaths is 81.

As of May 12, 65.2 per cent of Nova Scotians 18 and older have received a booster dose and 41,584 people have received a fourth dose of vaccine.

Those who received three or more doses of COVID-19 vaccine had an 84.6 per cent lower risk of hospitalization and a 92.8 per cent lower risk of death than those who were unvaccinated or had only one dose.

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