33 New Cases of COVID-19, 182 Recoveries

Today, May 27, Nova Scotia is reporting 33 new cases of COVID-19 and 182 recoveries.

There are 18 cases in Eastern Zone, 14 in Central Zone and one in Northern Zone.

One of the cases in Eastern Zone involves a staff member at Harbourstone Enhanced Care, a long-term care facility in Sydney. Public health is providing direction on isolation and other requirements.

There is still community spread in Central Zone and limited community spread in Sydney. Northern and Western Zones continue to be closely monitored for community spread.

“We continue to see virus activity across the province, which serves as a reminder of the importance of going out and getting tested, even if you have no symptoms,” said Premier Iain Rankin. “Testing helps detect cases early on, which helps to manage and limit the spread of the virus.”

As of today, Nova Scotia has 638 active cases of COVID-19. There are 63 people in hospital, including 21 in ICU. The median age of people hospitalized in the third wave is 52 for non-ICU, and 57 for people in ICU.

On May 26, Nova Scotia Health Authority's labs completed 6,413 tests.

As of May 26, 542,196 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. Of those, 42,904 Nova Scotians have received their second dose.

“We just opened up vaccine booking eligibility to people 12 and older, and I encourage parents and guardians to talk with their children about the vaccine,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health. “By getting vaccinated you are protecting yourself, your friends and family, and your community.”

Since April 1, there have been 3,715 positive COVID-19 cases and 13 deaths. Cases range in age from under 10 to over 90. There are 3,064 resolved cases. Cumulative cases may change as data is updated in Panorama.

Travel within Nova Scotia:
Nova Scotians should remain as close to their home and community as possible, unless travel is essential for work, caregiving, necessary shopping or medical appointments, including vaccination appointments. In this instance, 'community' is defined as one's municipality or county. Detailed information is available at https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/restrictions-and-guidance/ .

Testing advice:
Nova Scotians with or without symptoms can book a test at https://covid-self-assessment.novascotia.ca/en for primary assessment centres across the province. Those with no symptoms are strongly encouraged to use pop-up sites if they want to be tested.

More information on testing can be found at https://www.nshealth.ca/coronavirustesting .

Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms is advised to self-isolate and book a COVID-19 test. Everyone they live with must also self-isolate until the person receives their first negative test result. If the test is positive, public health will advise everyone about what to do.

Anyone advised by public health that they were a close contact needs to complete a full 14-day quarantine, regardless of test results. If the close contact is symptomatic, everyone they live with must also self-isolate until the person receives their first negative test result. If the test is positive, public health will advise everyone about what to do.

Symptoms and self-assessment:
Nova Scotians should visit https://covid-self-assessment.novascotia.ca/ to do a self-assessment if in the past 48 hours they have had or are currently experiencing mild symptoms, including:

• fever (i.e. chills/sweats) or cough (new or worsening)
• sore throat
• runny nose/nasal congestion
• headache
• shortness of breath/difficulty breathing

People should call 811 if they cannot access the online self-assessment or wish to speak with a nurse about their symptoms.

Anyone with symptoms should immediately self-isolate and book a test.

Quick Facts:

• a state of emergency was declared under the Emergency Management Act on March 22, 2020, and extended to May 30, 2021
• due to an increased number of investigations, the exposure category (i.e., travel, close contact or under investigation) is not available by release time; a breakdown by zone identifying exposure categories will no longer be provided regularly

Additional Resources:

More information on COVID-19 case data, testing and vaccines is available at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/data/

More information on testing for the Sydney, Bridgewater and Annapolis Valley areas can be found at: https://www.nshealth.ca/news/public-health-increasing-covid-19-testing-capacity-across-province-address-areas-concern-0

Nova Scotians can find accurate, up-to-date information, handwashing posters and fact sheets at: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus

Businesses and other organizations can find information to help them safely reopen and operate at: https://novascotia.ca/reopening-nova-scotia

More information about public health text notifications of positive COVID-19 cases and close contacts is available here: https://www.nshealth.ca/news/public-health-begins-contacting-positive-covid-19-cases-close-contacts-text-message

More information on what is considered essential travel is available here: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/travel/#from-outside-atlantic-canada

Government of Canada: https://canada.ca/coronavirus or 1-833-784-4397 (toll-free)

The Mental Health Provincial Crisis Line is available 24/7 to anyone experiencing a mental health or addictions crisis, or someone concerned about them, by calling 1-888-429-8167 (toll-free)

Anyone needing help with a non-crisis mental health or addiction concern can call Community Mental Health and Addictions at 1-855-922-1122 (toll-free) weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Kids Help Phone is available 24/7 by calling 1-800-668-6868 (toll-free)

For help or information about domestic violence 24/7, call 1-855-225-0220 (toll-free)