Actions Protect People, B.C. Communities This Respiratory Illness Season

We are a month into the fall and winter respiratory illness season, the province says British Columbians are rolling up their sleeves to protect themselves.

This year’s immunization campaign launched to the general population on Oct. 10, 2023. As of last week, more than a million doses of influenza vaccines and about 850,000 COVID19 vaccines had been administered.

The latest numbers from the BC Centre for Disease Control show that COVID-19 cases are decreasing after a peak in early October, with fewer cases and hospitalizations weekly.

“An increase in hospital visits with the fall respiratory illness season requires measures to ensure our acute care is effective and our health-care system is strong, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health.

“We all know that getting immunized is the best way for us to protect ourselves, our loved ones, and the B.C. health-care workers we rely on. We all know that to keep ourselves healthy and our health-care system strong, we all need to do our part. And by getting our free and readily available COVID-19 and influenza vaccines at the same time, we’re all doing precisely what’s needed.”

Community members in B.C. are reminded to stay home if they are presenting with symptoms of COVID-19, influenza, or other respiratory viruses to prevent transmission to other people, to cover coughs and sneezes by coughing or sneezing into an arm or sleeve, and to clean their hands frequently.

Invitations have gone out to 4.4 million people registered through the Get Vaccinated system, and more than 1.1 million have received a reminder.