69.7% of all adults and 66.1% of those 12 and older have received their first dose

DR. Bonnie Henry, Provincial Health Officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, on Monday reported a total of 708 new COVID-19 cases, for a total of 144,289 cases in British Columbia.

There have been 11 new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 1,703 deaths in the province.

They said: “Today, we are reporting on three periods. From May 28 to May 29, we had 258 new cases. From May 29 to May 30, we had 238 new cases and in the last 24 hours, we had a further 212 new cases.

There are 2,953 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and a further 139,562 people who tested positive have recovered.

Of the active cases, 249 individuals are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 78 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.

Since Friday, there have been 140 new cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 394 new cases in the Fraser Health region, 18 in the Island Health region, 113 in the Interior Health region, 42 in the Northern Health region and one new case of a person who resides outside of Canada.

There is one new health-care facility outbreak at Richmond Lions Manor-Bridgeport (Vancouver Coastal Health). The outbreak at Chartwell Carlton Care is now over.

Henry and Dix said: “3,250,161 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in B.C., 179,954 of which are second doses. This means 69.7% of all adults and 66.1% of those 12 and older have received their first dose.

“While we are making significant headway in our immunization efforts, this is a time of caution for all of us. New strains continue to circulate and outbreaks are still occurring in all regions of the province.

“Immunizations are an extremely effective tool. But it takes time for them to fully protect us, which is why it is important we all stay vigilant to prevent further virus transmission in our communities.

“Registering with the Get Vaccinated immunization system is the fastest way to get your first and second doses. Anyone who received their vaccine prior to April 15 is asked to please register today, if you have not already done so. If you are unsure, complete the two-minute registration process and the system will immediately confirm your registration.

“This past weekend, almost 300,000 people in B.C. were booked for their second booster dose – another encouraging and necessary step for all of us to maximize our protection for the maximum amount of time.

“While there is much that is positive and encouraging on the horizon with the COVID-19 vaccination progress, we pause and mourn the 215 children whose remains were found at the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

“We stand with the families of children buried at Indian Residential Schools and honour the strength and resilience of those who survived.

“Let’s take this time of sadness to connect with our children, our grandchildren and families to honour those we have lost.”