Canadian LifeLabs customers have only a few days left to file an application for a class-action settlement resulting from a major data breach.
Those who live in Canada and used LifeLabs’ services on or before Dec. 17, 2019, may apply for the settlement, but must do so by the end of the week.
Settlement class members who complete a valid claim form before the Saturday deadline will be eligible to get an estimated compensation of $50 to $150.
Comments closedThe number of patients with COVID-19 in B.C. hospitals declined to its lowest level of 2024 in the latest data update from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
There were 133 test-positive patients in provincial hospitals as of Thursday, according to the BCCDC. The last published update to show a total lower than that was in August of last year, when the BCCDC reported just 76 patients hospitalized.
This week’s hospitalized population is less than half of what it was around this time last year. The final published update of March 2023 showed 294 patients in B.C. hospitals.
Comments closedIf you’re headed to the hospital on Monday, you won’t need to wear a mask as Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services has updated its masking guidelines.
Masking had been required for patients and visitors at health-care facilities since February, but will no longer be required as of Monday, according to NL Health Services.
People who are seeking care and showing symptoms of viruses like COVID-19 will still be required to wear a mask. They can wear their own medical mask to the facility — but not a cloth mask — or get one on-site.
Comments closedNew guidelines suggest certain high-risk groups could benefit from having another dose of a COVID-19 vaccine this spring — and more frequent shots in general — while the broader population could be entering once-a-year territory, much like an annual flu shot.
Medical experts told CBC News that falling behind on the latest shots can come with health risks, particularly for individuals who are older or immunocompromised.
“Even when the risk of infection starts to increase, the vaccines still do a really good job at decreasing risk of severe disease,” said McMaster University researcher and immunologist Matthew Miller.
Comments closedThe number of confirmed measles cases in Canada so far this year is more than three times higher than all infections recorded in 2023, the country’s public health official said, urging people to make sure their vaccines are up to date.
The Public Health Agency of Canada identified 40 confirmed cases across the country in 2024, its Chief Administrator, Dr. Theresa Tam, confirmed on Wednesday.
Tam expressed concern that an insufficient number of school-aged children have not been properly vaccinated against the highly contagious virus.
Comments closedThe number of confirmed measles cases in Canada so far this year is more than three times higher than all infections recorded in 2023, the country’s chief public health officer said as she urged people to ensure their vaccinations are up to date.
The Public Health Agency of Canada is aware of 40 confirmed cases across the country in 2024, Dr. Theresa Tam said on Wednesday.
Tam said she is concerned that not enough school-aged children have been adequately vaccinated against the highly contagious virus.
“I strongly advise parents or caregivers to ensure that children in their care have received all measles vaccines according to schedule,” she said in an interview.
Comments closedWARNING: This story contains offensive and racist language.
A Kelowna man charged with causing a disturbance after yelling at a security guard at a vaccine clinic has been found not guilty by a B.C. judge.
Bruce Orydzuk, 60, was captured on video repeatedly yelling at the guard, who was wearing a turban. The guard had asked him to leave the property of a COVID-19 vaccine clinic in July 2021.
Comments closedThe Ottawa Public Library will be providing free solar eclipse glasses to residents in anticipation of a partial solar eclipse on April 8.
While supplies last, the glasses that provide proper protection for eclipse viewing will include a printed handout with safety instructions.
The City of Ottawa says it will launch the initiative on Thursday, March 28. All library branches will have total solar eclipse glasses available for the public, starting when branches open on Thursday.
Officials say quantities of glasses are limited, so branches will run out before April 8.
Comments closedHuron Perth Healthcare Alliance (HPHA) is updating its masking policy.
“Based upon the most recent Public Health Ontario guidance, updates will be made…” read a release from the organization.
Effective immediately, masking will be “welcomed but no longer required,” in many clinical areas of HPHA hospital sites with the exception of emergency departments where masking is still required.
Masking will also still be required for anybody who has symptoms of respiratory infection such as cough, fever and sore throat. If you’re accompanying somebody with symptoms, you must also wear a mask.
Comments closedThree more New Brunswickers have died from COVID-19, while no new influenza deaths have been reported, and hospitalizations for both viruses have decreased, updated data from the province Tuesday shows.
A child under four, and three youth aged five to 19 are among those hospitalized by the flu between March 10 and March 16, according to the Respiratory Watch report.
“COVID-19 activity remains moderate; some indicators (number of cases, percent positivity, and hospitalizations) decreased slightly during the current reporting period,” it says.
Influenza activity “slightly decreased” during the reporting week.
Of the three people who died, one was aged 45 to 64 and the other two were aged 65 or older.
Comments closedPublic health officials say they were able to notify all individuals with direct exposure to the third confirmed case of measles in Toronto.
Comments closedComments closedTaken together, these studies show that COVID-19 poses a serious risk to brain health, even in mild cases, and the effects are now being revealed at the population level. […]
The growing body of research now confirms that COVID-19 should be considered a virus with a significant impact on the brain. The implications are far-reaching, from individuals experiencing cognitive struggles to the potential impact on populations and the economy.
Bodies and minds are just as affected by climate change as sea ice and forests, says University of Alberta scientist Sherilee Harper.
“Climate change impacts everything we care about,” she said. “It’s not just an environmental issue.”
That’s why Harper, along with 30 or so colleagues from disciplines as wide-ranging as economics and epidemiology, have banded together into what she calls Canada’s first university hub to shift the view of climate change from an environmental problem to a threat to human health.
Comments closedThere have now been around thirty cases of measles in Quebec since the start of the year. While this number may not seem high, measles outbreaks indicate that vaccination coverage is inadequate. Interview with Ève Dubé, anthropologist and holder of the CIHR Applied Public Health Chair in the Anthropology of Vaccination Issues, INSPQ-ULaval.
Comments closedA woman in her 90s has died of COVID-19, raising the pandemic toll to 12 deaths this year.
The regional public health unit reported the latest death Friday in a weekly update of indicators. The health unit counts cases where the pandemic disease is a main or contributing cause of death.
Hospitalizations are stable at a relatively low level. There are currently six patients with COVID-19 in three local hospitals on an average day. A typical day during the four-year pandemic is 26 patients hospitalized.
Comments closed