BC reported 509 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the province's total to 60,117. There have been nine new deaths from the virus since the province's last update. Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say in a joint statement that there are 4,604 active cases of COVID-19. They say residents must continue to work together as short-term production delays affect the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. So far, 75,614 people have received COVID-19 vaccine shots in BC. 349 people are currently hospitalized, of those 68 are in intensive care.

Canada's top doctor says BC is sending an important message to the rest of the country as officials in this province explore limits on interprovincial travel. Doctor Theresa Tam, chief medical officer of health, says now is not the time for vacation travel, across the country or anywhere else. She says halting interprovincial travel would be a difficult decision but could limit potential contact with COVID-19 carriers, slowing the spread of the virus. Premier John Horgan said yesterday that his government is seeking legal opinions on whether restrictions can be placed on visitors to BC. This

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government is working day in and day out to get vaccines delivered as quickly as possible. But he says with an undertaking this historic, it's only to be expected that there will be a few bumps along the way. Pfizer-BioNTech is temporarily reducing deliveries of its COVID-19 vaccine to Canada because of production issues in Europe.Trudeau says it is an issue out of our hands. Trudeau says this does not impact the goal to have enough vaccines for every Canadian who wants one by September.

Procurement Minister Anita Anand says production issues in Europe will temporarily reduce Pfizer-BioNTech's ability to deliver vaccines to Canada. Anand says the U.S drug-maker is temporarily reducing deliveriesbecause of issues with its European production lines.She adds that while the company says it will still be able to deliver four million doses by the end of March, that is no longer guaranteed.Anand says it's unfortunate, but such delays and issues are to beexpected when global supply chains are stretched well beyond their limits.Canada has received about 380,000 doses of the vaccine so

British Columbia's provincial health officer expressed concern as she reported the first South African strain of COVID-19 uncovered in the province. Dr. Bonnie Henry says the person who contracted the South African variant had not travelled or had contact with anyone who did. She says officials are investigating where this person might have picked up the virus. Another person has also tested positive for the British variant of the virus, bringing that total to four cases, all connected to travel. Dr. Henry says there doesn't appear to have been any community spread of those infections. Offici

British Columbia's premier says his government is seeking legal advice on whether it can limit non-essential travel from people out of province during the pandemic. Premier John Horgan says there is concern about people coming from other provinces or territories and spreading COVID-19. Horgan says he and other premiers across the country have made the case for Canadians to stay home during the pandemic, but people continue to travel. He says the issue has been discussed for months and it's time to determine if the government can or can't act. The issue will be discussed during the NDP governm

The 38 year old woman convicted of murdering teenager Reena Virk near Victoria in 1997 will be allowed to continue her day parole. The Parole Board of Canada has released its ruling on Kelly Ellard, who now goes by the name of Kerry Sim. In a decision released Thursday, the board says Sim, now the mother of two young children, remains "positive and compliant" in the community and continues to have high reintegration potential. Her day parole was expanded last summer to allow her to live away from a residential facility for up to five days each week and the parole board is continuing that orde

Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is calling on the Liberal government to ease access to paid sick leave for Canadian workers to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Singh is criticizing the lag between filing for the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit and receiving it, a delay he compared to applying for employment insurance. He is asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to recall Parliament and legislate 10 days of paid sick leave for federally regulated employees through the Canada Labour Code, and to further promote the one-week, $500 benefit that is already in place. The New Democrat leader says upt

The professional group for emergency doctors in Canada wants more transparency about COVID-19 vaccine distribution.The Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians is calling for a clear description of who is being prioritized for the first doses and why. It also wants priority to go to those directly caring for patients who are critically ill or suspected of having COVID-19.The association says many members in areas with limited human resources have not been vaccinated, but urban providers who have less patient contact appear to have received doses.A Wednesday statement says communication ab