Nova Scotia surpasses 500 total COVID-19 deaths in latest weekly update – Halifax | Globalnews.ca

Nova Scotia reported 10 new deaths linked to COVID-19 in its latest weekly update — double the number of new deaths reported last week.

With this latest update, the COVID-19 death toll in the province has now surpassed 500. Since the pandemic began, a total of 507 people have died, 395 of whom died during the Omicron wave.

The province also said that in the seven-day period ending Sept. 5, 33 people were admitted to hospital, a decrease of five from the previous week.

However, the number of active hospitalizations has gone up. As of Sept. 6, there were 51 people in hospital, up from the 38 reported last week. Of the 51 in hospital, the median age is 78 — a drop from the previous median age of 84.

There are also 10 people in intensive care, up by two from the previous week.

Of those in hospital, 24 per cent have not received a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, though unvaccinated individuals represent under 15 per cent of Nova Scotians.

This week, the province also saw a drop in the number of new positive PCR tests. There were 986 new cases reported, down from 1,310 in the previous reporting period.

The province has opened up booster appointment bookings for children aged five to 11 and appointments began on Sept. 6.

As of Sept. 19, the province will also open up more appointments for those aged 12 and up, for both booster shots and completing the primary series.