Seven New Cases of COVID-19, Three Recoveries

Today, July 21, Nova Scotia is reporting seven new cases of COVID-19 and three recoveries.

Six of the cases are in Central Zone. Three are close contacts of previously reported cases and three are related to travel. Two of the cases are connected to the Royal Canadian Navy frigate HMCS Halifax and were previously announced by the Canadian Armed Forces.

One case is in Western Zone and is related to travel.

All four health zones continue to be closely monitored for community spread.

“This week, we broke the million-mark on lab-based testing since the start of the pandemic in March 2020,” said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health. “Testing has been critical in the fight against this virus. I want to thank Nova Scotians who stepped up time and time again to get tested and the many people who worked long and hard to establish and operate our testing program. While we work toward our minimum target of 75 per cent of Nova Scotians fully vaccinated, keep getting tested, especially if you have symptoms, and please, get your vaccine.”

As of today, Nova Scotia has 11 active cases of COVID-19. There are currently no hospitalizations.

Nova Scotia Health Authority's labs completed 2,624 tests on July 19 and 3,141 on July 20.

As of July 20, 1,240,114 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered. Of those, 512,393 Nova Scotians have received their second dose.

Since April 1, there have been 4,138 positive COVID-19 cases and 26 deaths. Cases range in age from under 10 to over 90. There are 4,101 resolved cases. Cumulative cases may change as data is updated in Panorama.

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 encouraged to use one of the primary assessment centres with drop-in testing, pop-up sites, or public health mobile units 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.

Anyone advised by public health that they were a close contact needs to complete a full 14-day quarantine, regardless of test results, unless they are fully vaccinated. If they are fully vaccinated at least 14 days before the exposure date, they do not need to self-isolate as long as they are not experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms. They should still get tested and should monitor for symptoms up to 14 days after the exposure date. If symptoms develop, they should get tested and self-isolate until they receive a negative test result.

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 July 25, 2021

Additional Resources:

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

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

Nova's Scotia's five-phase reopening plan, announced May 28, 2021: https://novascotia.ca/reopening-plan/

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

A list of primary assessment locations, including locations with drop-in testing, is available online at: https://www.nshealth.ca/coronavirustesting#assessment-centre-locations

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)