For the first time in two months, the number of coronavirus-positive patients in BC hospitals increased this week.  There were 369 in hospitals, including 36 in intensive care, as of Thursday.
This chart shows the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Thursdays in B.C.  since the province switched to a “hospital census” model in January.  (CTV)
The BCCDC reports anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 during hospital admission as a COVID-related hospitalization, even if the illness is not the primary reason the patient needs hospital care.
Since the province switched to this “hospital census” model of tracking hospitalizations in January, as many as 985 patients with COVID-19 have been recorded on Thursday and just 255.
The incoming wave of infections is the third caused by a variant of the Omicron strain of the virus.
The independent modeling team predicts that the BA.5 subvariable – believed to be responsible for the majority of new cases – will fuel the latest surge in infections, although it’s unclear how high the wave will peak or what impact it will have on B.C. already strained healthcare system. 
The BCCDC’s latest report on the province’s coronavirus lineages does not separate BA.5, but showed that the proportion of “other” variants – which includes BA.5, BA.4 and some BA.2 strains – is increasing. 
The “other” category accounted for about half of all the coronavirus genomes analyzed in the province from the week of June 19 to 25.
The BCCDC said BA.5 was increasing at the fastest rate, accounting for about 40 percent of all cases during the week in question, which ended 10 days ago.

CASES AND SEWAGE

Hospitalizations are generally a late indicator of the transmission of COVID-19.  They usually don’t start to rise or fall until a week or more after the number of infections starts to rise or fall.
This effect is somewhat offset in the BC data, however, because the number of patients in hospitals is the only number that the BCCDC publishes in real time.  All other data published by the center each week is based on the last completed “epidemiological week”.
Thursday’s data on infections and sewage monitoring is from the week of June 26 to July 2, meaning it is five days behind the number of hospital patients.
However, the number of new cases reported for the period was up – the first time weekly cases have increased since the epidemiological week ending April 30.
The BCCDC reported 765 new laboratory-confirmed infections from June 26 to July 2, up from 620 the previous week. 
These totals include only “laboratory-confirmed, laboratory-probable and linked cases,” according to the BCCDC.  They do not include the results of rapid home tests, which are the only type of test available to most BC residents, meaning the numbers released each week do not capture the overall spread of COVID-19 in the province.
Wastewater data from the Lower Mainland can help approximate the trend of infections among people who do not qualify for laboratory testing.
As of July 2, viral loads at four of the five wastewater treatment plants in the Lower Mainland showed increasing trends, with only the Lulu Island plant showing a modest decrease in coronavirus concentrations, according to the BCCDC’s weekly “status report” .
At the Lions Gate plant on the North Shore, viral loads rose 115 percent week-on-week, and at the plant in Northwest Langley, they rose 251 percent over the past three weeks.

VACCINATIONS AND FUTURE PLANNING

Earlier this week, Health Minister Adrian Dix told reporters at a press conference that the province is preparing for a resurgence of COVID-19 in the fall and said everyone in BC should expect to receive a booster dose of vaccine at that time.
Dix is ​​scheduled to hold another press conference with Dr.  Penny Balem on Friday afternoon, in which she will discuss the province’s vaccination strategy.
While vaccination has not prevented waves of infections caused by Omicron and its subvariants, it has greatly reduced the risk of serious outcomes from the disease.
BCCDC data show that a person with three or more doses of vaccine is about half as likely as an unvaccinated person of the same age to be hospitalized and about one-third as likely to need intensive care.  
As cases and hospitalizations in BC begin to rise again, the number of health care workers taking time off work due to illness has also increased.
About 16,400 health care workers took at least one day off work in the week of June 20, according to Dix, up from about 15,000 recorded a few weeks earlier.
Not all of those layoffs were caused by COVID-19, but workers in the industry — already facing burnout after more than two years of the pandemic — say the increased spread of the coronavirus is putting more pressure on the system.
Hospital Workers Union policy and planning co-ordinator Mike Old said health workers were facing a “worrying” situation with regard to COVID-19.
“We’re seeing health care vacancies because of illness that we haven’t seen since late January,” he said.  “Employees are really, really burned out.”
Old said a poll of their members found that one in four said their employers are not filling in for sickness or other vacancies, and one in three are considering leaving health care in the next two years.
“It’s really important that members of our community understand that when they are protecting themselves from the transmission of COVID, they are also protecting our health care system,” he said.  “Healthcare workers need all the help they can get.”
Dix said the province is continuing its efforts to strengthen its health care system while hiring and training more workers.
Asked if the government would consider reinstating any of the previous COVID-related restrictions in the fall, Dix declined to rule it out.
“No option is ever ruled out,” he said, adding that officials still recommend wearing masks indoors.
“I’m the health minister, I have access to a lot of information about health care; I wear masks indoors in public,” Dix said.
With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Andrew Weichel and Maria Weisgarber