Omicron transmission is declining in B.C., modelling suggests — but hospitalizations have yet to peak – CBC

Community transmission down in health authority regions in province’s southwest

Jan 14, 2022

COVID-19 modelling released by the B.C. government shows the latest wave of the pandemic, propelled by the Omicron variant, may have peaked in parts of the province — but that British Columbians are not out of the woods yet.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry presented the latest modelling projections in a news conference Friday. She says the Omicron wave has spread faster than previous ones and health officials believe the top of the latest surge has already been reached.

The data shows while community transmission is trending down in most health regions, there is likely to be a rise in hospitalizations in the coming week or two.

This, according to Henry, is because of a lag time between peak community transmission and peak hospitalizations during the Omicron wave, as evidenced in other parts of the country such as Ontario and Quebec where the variant arrived earlier.

“We think that we hit the peak of community transmission in B.C. probably this past weekend,” said Henry.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/covid-update-jan14-1.6315010