B.C. COVID-19 update: 5 more deaths as hospitalizations continue to decline

The number of COVID-19-positive patients in B.C. hospitals continued to decline Thursday, dropping to 867 in the latest update from the provincial Ministry of Health.

The number of COVID-19-positive patients in B.C. hospitals continued to decline Thursday, dropping to 867 in the latest update from the provincial Ministry of Health.

That total includes both people whose coronavirus infection is serious enough that they require hospitalization and people who were admitted to hospital for other reasons and tested positive incidentally.

There are 138 people in intensive care units with COVID-19, according to the ministry.

Thursday's update also included five more deaths attributed to the coronavirus, bringing B.C.'s total for the pandemic to 2,730.

None of the latest deaths happened in the Lower Mainland. Two were in the Interior Health region, two were in Island Health and one was in Northern Health.

The ministry does not provide the vaccination status of those whose deaths are attributed to COVID-19 on a daily basis. However, the B.C. Centre for Disease Control provides such data for month-long periods on its COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard. 

Most of the 247 COVID-19 deaths between Jan. 8 and Feb. 4 were among people who had received at least two doses of vaccine. There were 53 deaths (or 21 per cent of the total) among those with two shots and 119 (48 per cent) among those who had three shots. A total of 68 unvaccinated people (28 per cent) died during the period.