As Manitoba health officials announced the province’s sixth death due to COVID-19, Premier Brian Pallister announced a 30-day extension of Manitoba’s state of emergency.
Provincial chief provincial health officer Dr. Brent Roussin announced the province had processed over 20,000 tests at Cadham Provincial Laboratory. Over 200 tests were processed April 19, with one new person testing positive.
“While Manitoba case numbers do appear to be low... this does not mean the risk of COVID-19 is low,” Pallister said.
“This is a reflection of the necessary social distancing protocols and practices that you as Manitobans have put into place. This is not the time to take our foot off the brakes. We must remain vigilant. We must do everything we can to continue flattening the curve. We must stick to the fundamentals that have allowed us to be where we are today.”
A woman in her 80s who lived in Winnipeg was reported to have died from the disease April 20. Roussin said the province was tracking 105 active cases of COVID-19.
With travel above the 53rd parallel restricted, Roussin said northern communities are a priority for testing.
“Our testing capacity has increased right now with the demand for testing has been down and that's why we've expanded the testing criteria further,” he said.
“If you have respiratory symptoms, cough, runny nose, sore throat or a fever, and finally meet the testing criteria, call health links and they'll guide you for the next steps.”
Priorities for provincial testing now include people who live or work in northern Manitoba, including people who work or live in isolated or group settings, including work camps, residential facilities, shelters or long-term care homes.
Testing criteria have loosened to include all symptomatic people returning to Manitoba from travel or who have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Laboratory workers who have worked with COVID-19 tests, health care workers, first responders, workers or volunteers in essential services and all symptomatic people who live with a health care worker, first responder, or worker in a correctional facility, shelter, residential facility or long-term care home are also focused in testing.
Roussin said if demand ramps up, Manitoba is aiming to process up to 2,000 tests per day. All people who travel outside of Manitoba are required to self-isolate for two weeks, with exceptions for regular travel and for communities located near a provincial border, like Creighton or Denare Beach.
Roussin said the travel restrictions are part of the requirements to loosen other measures across Manitoba.
“We're gonna let our numbers guide it,” he said.
“We want to ensure that we're ramping up the ability to test because we'll need that for increasing demand. We want to ensure that we have all of the at risk populations protected… We're going to continue looking at those numbers and if we do see them down and we're going to have to very cautiously start reopening things.”
Officials said no cases have been detected in Manitoba inside First Nations communities. Passenger bus service to Flin Flon and Thompson has been halted because of the travel restrictions.
