COVID-19 test positivity remains sky-high around the Lower Mainland – and New Westminster is no exception.
B.C. Centre for Disease Control data shows test positivity in New Westminster was 41% for the week of Jan. 25 to 31. The previous week, test positivity stood at 46%.
Test positivity remains similarly high around the region, with a couple of areas seeing positivity rates exceeding 50%: West Vancouver at 54% and Killarney at 51%. (Positivity rates reflect only public testing, not private.)
At the same time, reported case numbers are going down; BCCDC data shows 155 cases in New Westminster between Jan. 25 and 31, for a daily case rate of 26 per 100,000 people. Officially, that's down from last week, when the case count was 214, or 36/100K.
However, it's no longer possible to count the actual number of cases, since testing around British Columbia is now severely restricted.
The BCCDC says the majority of people who have symptoms of COVID-19 do not require testing.
"Similar to the approach to testing for other diseases, testing for COVID-19 is recommended when a positive or negative result will inform decisions about treatment or care," the BCCDC website said in a Feb. 1 update.
As of Feb. 1, Fraser Health's website notes testing is available for those who have symptoms of COVID-19 and who meet one of the eligibility criteria:
- People for whom testing is clinically indicated (people who are pregnant, hospitalized, moderately to severely immunocompromised or whose vaccines are not up to date).
- People 18 years of age and older who are unvaccinated or partially vaccinated.
- Individuals who live or work in high-risk settings.
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
