Health officials say British Columbia's COVID-19 restart plan will be a slow, cautious progression to normal life, but they acknowledge it may cause anxiety or fear in some people. In a news release Wednesday, Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say many others are excited about the transition and people will be able to progress along with the restart plan or in a slower, more gradual process. Dix and Henry say people must be mindful of communities that are assessing their own risks and take time to welcome back visitors. They also say businesses will be r

The United Nations Human Rights Office is calling on all levels of Canadian governments to investigate the deaths of Indigenous children at residential schools and to intensity efforts to find those who are missing. A spokeswoman for the human rights office says the detection of what are believed to be 215 bodies of Indigenous children at a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C., is ``shocking and reopens painful wounds.''Marta Hurtado says Canada must ensure ``prompt and exhaustive investigations'' into the deaths and search any unmarked graves. She says healing will only be possible on

British Columbia health officials say about 70 per cent of eligible adults in the province have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Officials say in a news release that they will be following the National Advisory Committee on Immunization guidelines on mixing and matching vaccines. They say those who got a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine can now receive either the same one, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for their second shot. Officials say more information will be given later this week on second doses for those who received AstraZeneca for their first shot. The provinc

Preliminary reporting released by the BC Coroners Service confirms at least 176 British Columbians were lost to toxic illicit drugs in April, bringing the total number of deaths recorded in 2021 to 680."Once again, we're reminded that the scale of this public health emergency is truly unprecedented," said Lisa Lapointe, chief coroner. "I offer my heartfelt condolences to every family in the province that is experiencing the unimaginable pain of sudden and unexpected loss. Every life lost to toxic drugs in our province is a profound tragedy. Every one of them mattered, and every one of them wil

A retired Supreme Court justice is calling for significant changes to how the Canadian Armed Forces deals with allegations of sexual misconduct following a months-long review of Canada' military justice system. In an at-times scathing report tabled in the House of Commons this morning, Morris Fish says his review confirmed that the nature, extent and human cost of sexual misconduct in the military remains as rampant and destructive as in 2015. That was when fellow retired Supreme Court justice Marie Deschamps released her own explosive report that revealed a highly sexualized culture within t

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization issued guidance today allowing for people who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine as their first dose to get an mRNA vaccine for their second. A study in the United Kingdom reported last month that mixing AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech as first and second doses led to more reports of short-lived side-effects like fevers and fatigue but was otherwise safe. The Spanish study concluded a second dose of Pfizer after a first dose of AstraZeneca produced more than twice the antibodies as a second dose of AstraZeneca. All provinces paused the use

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued a joint statement regarding updates on the COVID-19 response in British Columbia. "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."This results in a total of 708 new cases, for a total of 144,289 cases in British Columbia."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 acti

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is signalling he supports N-D-P Leader Jagmeet Singh's call for an emergency debate on the discovery of Indigenous childrens' remains. The remains of more than 200 children were found on the grounds of a former residential school in Kamloops, BC. Trudeau also says he will speak to the three cabinet ministers who oversee Indigenous policy. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he was appalled at hearing of the discovery of at least 215 Indigenous children's bodies found on the grounds of a former residential school in British Columbia. Trudeau says Canadians cannot hi

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has asked that flags on all federal buildings be flown at half-mast in honour of the lives of 215 children whose remains were found at a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.Trudeau says he has made the request, which will include the Peace Tower flag, to honour all Indigenous children who "never made it home", the survivors of the school and their families.Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tk'emlups te Secwepemc First Nation in British Columbia said the remains of 215 children, some as young as three years old, were confirmed last weekend with the help of groun