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‘Honour our fathers’ with COVID-19 vaccine protection, B.C. urges

109 new cases Friday, 75 per cent of 12 and up immunized
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Fraser Health registered nurse Ramn Manan draws a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a walk-up vaccination clinic at Bear Creek Park, in Surrey, B.C., on Monday, May 17, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

B.C. public health officials urged everyone who hasn’t been vaccinated against COVID-19 to do so to protect older people in the community, as clinics continue and 75 per cent of B.C. residents age 12 and up have had at least one dose.

“This weekend, for Father’s Day, let’s do our part and honour our fathers by protecting them with our own COVID-19 vaccine,” Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Friday. “Getting fully vaccinated with two doses of World Health Organization-approved vaccines in use in Canada today also ensures you will be able to travel when it is once again safe to do so.”

B.C. health authorities reported 109 new cases of COVID-19 infection in the 24 hours up to June 18, consistent with the past week’s daily infections. There are 128 people in hospital, down from 131 on Thursday, and 48 in intensive care, up from 44 in the past 24 hours. There has been one new COVID-19 related death recorded for a total of 1,740 since the pandemic began 16 months ago.

Henry reminded people that with vaccine deliveries varying over the next month, Pfizer and Moderna shots are interchangeable for people getting a second dose.

Of the new cases, 13 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 65 are in the Fraser Health region, 26 are in the Interior Health region and five are in the Northern Health region. There are no new cases in the Island Health region.

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@tomfletcherbc
tfletcher@blackpress.ca

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