COVID-19 GN Update - May 6, 2021

Premier’s update:

Today we are reporting 12 new cases and eight recoveries of COVID-19. There are 86 active cases in the territory - 84 in Iqaluit and two in Kinngait. There have been 71 recoveries to date in this outbreak.

So far, 16,271 Nunavummiut have received their first dose of the Moderna vaccine, and 12,692 Nunavummiut are now fully vaccinated.

We all know that no one wants COVID-19, and I’ll continue to urge people to stop blaming and assuming about the virus and its transmission.

However, I want to remind everyone about their responsibility to do the right things. We all need to make sure we are doing everything we can to protect one another.

Remember that your actions can impact everyone’s health. Public health is everyone’s duty.

So, Nunavummiut, please continue to follow all the measures we have in place. Mask up anytime you’re outside your household. Wash your hands often. Stay home as much as possible. Get vaccinated.

Have a safe and responsible weekend.

 

Chief Public Health Officer Update:

Good morning,

On Tuesday, we announced that after screening the boarding home staff and clients for COVID-19 that medical travellers had been cleared to return home. Yesterday, we received questions and concerns about whether it is safe to stay at the boarding home.

It is safe. There have been no COVID-19 cases confirmed in clients from the boarding home. The staff who tested positive and those who are high-risk contacts are in isolation and will not return to work until they have recovered from COVID-19 and been cleared by Public Health to leave isolation. 

The boarding home also has processes in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 including:

• Enhanced cleaning.
• Encouraging guests to isolate in their rooms.
• There are no visitors allowed and current public health measures prohibit visiting around the city.
• Clients are asked to only leave for their appointments or to pick up prescriptions.
• Food and beverages are being delivered to the rooms.
• Nobody is allowed to gather inside.
• Only clients are allowed on the property, and social distancing is required while outside.
• Masks and social distancing are mandatory.
• Staff that are working were not exposed and have tested negative.

If you are a medical traveller who has been cleared for travel from Iqaluit, you are still required to isolate for 14 days. Members of your household must also isolate. This extra layer of safety ensures that the risk of COVID-19 spreading to other communities is as low as possible.

Yesterday, the two cases in Rankin Inlet recovered, were cleared from isolation and were able to return home. As of yesterday, there were 23 cases of COVID-19 at the Baffinland Iron Mine. Staff from the Baffinland Mine will be transferred to the south, to complete their isolation there.

There are currently 10 active cases of COVID-19 at the Baffin Correctional Centre, all individuals are stable and isolating on site. Three individuals have been medevac’d to Ottawa and are under treatment there. No other Nunavummiut have been admitted to hospital due to this outbreak.

I have been very clear in previous statements that it is very important that people follow public health measures.

Visiting and social gatherings are the main causes of spread in Iqaluit right now. These activities put people at risk and will extend the outbreak if they don’t stop.

Gatherings of individuals from different households can expose everyone at the gathering, and everyone they live with to COVID-19. We are asking anyone that has attended a house party in the last three weeks to contact the hotline and request swabbing.

Thank you.

 

As part of the Government of Nunavut’s (GN) effort to protect Nunavummiut against the risk of COVID-19, GN Departments are implementing the following:

Department of Health Services

For all the latest information and resources about COVID-19 in Nunavut, go to: https://www.gov.nu.ca/health/information/covid-19-novel-coronavirus

For the latest information on current public health restrictions, go to: https://www.gov.nu.ca/health/information/nunavuts-path

For information on upcoming vaccine clinics go to: https://gov.nu.ca/health/information/covid-19-vaccination

 

 

COVID-19 case status: May 6

Total Tests	Total confirmed cases	Total active cases	Total recovered cases	Deaths	Total persons followed	Current persons followed
13,010	552	86	462	4	8656	437

*Confirmed cases include those meeting the national case definitions. Persons followed includes individuals with specific symptoms and exposures as well as others who are self-monitoring or self-isolated. Not all of these individuals have symptoms or require testing.

*There may be a delay reporting attribution and statistics from cases acquired in Southern Canada. 12 cases that were detected out of territory have been attributed to Nunavut. This includes 3 deaths. Not all NU residents with COVID-19 detected out of territory will be attributed to Nunavut.

COVID-19 community case statistics: May 6

Community	Active COVID-19 transmission	Time period	Confirmed COVID-19 cases yesterday	Confirmed COVID-19 cases today	Change in case count +/- from previous day	Deaths	Recovered Cases	Total active cases
Iqaluit	Ongoing	Since 14/04/2021	137	149	12	0	65	84
Kinngait	Ongoing	Since 19/04/2021	6	6	0	0	4	2
Rankin Inlet	Ongoing	Since 24/04/2021	2	2	0	0	2	0
Arviat	over	11/2020 – 04/2021	339	339	0	1	338	0
Whale Cove	over	11/2020 – 02/2021	23	23	0	0	23	0
Rankin Inlet	over	11/2020 – 12/2020	19	19	0	0	19	0
Sanikiluaq	over	11/2020 – 12/2020	2	2	0	0	2	0
TOTAL			528	540	12	1	453	86

COVID-19 vaccination status: May 6

First doses administered	Second doses administered	Total vaccine doses administered
16,271	12,692	28,963

*Total vaccine administered is updated as regularly as possible but might be lower than actual count.

Testing stats to date: May 6

Community	Tests Positive	Tests Negative
Iqaluit	149	1900
Kinngait	6	139
Rankin Inlet	2	46
Arviat	339	2,883
Whale Cove	23	352
Rankin Inlet	19	339
Sanikiluaq	2	202
TOTAL	540	5,861

Isolation population: 

Traveler Type	Guests in Isolation as of May 5
Medical	361
Public	250
EMTI	41
Construction	31
Total	683

Traveller repatriation summary:

Departure Date	# of Travellers from Health Isolation Sites
May 6, 2021	77
May 7, 2021	55
May 8, 2021	10
May 9, 2021	15
May 10, 2021	53
Total	210

Critical Worker Requests:

As of May 5, there were 15,985 requests, 7,943 of which were critical worker requests.

Request Status	#	%
Approved (includes critical and non-critical)	12,230	76.5%
Denied	308	1.9%
Pending	520	3.3%
Common Travel Area	2927	18.3%
Total	15,985	100%

 

 

Department of Justice Services

New developments in programs/ services:

Ten inmates have tested positive for COVID 19. All staff and inmates at the affected facilities have been tested for COVID-19 and contact tracing with the Department of Health is ongoing. There are currently 19 staff members who are isolating at home as a precaution.

Ongoing services:

All other correctional facilities remain operational. 

Adjusted services:

All inmates are confined to their dorms to isolate.

Additional safety measures are being taken in both affected facilities, including enhanced use of personal protective equipment.

Closed /Cancelled/Suspended services:

All access to Makigiarvik and Baffin Correctional Centre has been limited to staff and inmates only.

 

 

Department of Education Services

Ongoing services:

K-12 Schools

The following stages continue to be in effect:

• Stage 4 – Schools in Kinngait and Iqaluit.
• Stage 3 – Schools in the Qikiqtani region except Sanikiluaq, Kinngait, and Iqaluit.
• Stage 2 – Schools in Rankin Inlet.
• Stage 1 – Schools in Sanikiluaq, the Kitikmeot region, and Kivalliq region, except for Rankin Inlet.

Schools will implement the appropriate action plan for their current stage.

Early Learning and Child Care

All Nunavut childcare facilities can remain open, with the exception of Kinngait and Iqaluit.

Financial Assistance for Nunavut Students (FANS)

Students booking their FANS-eligible travel must follow the public health measures and recommendations of the CPHO. If students have questions about their travel, they can contact the FANS office for information at @email.

Closed /Cancelled/Suspended services:

K-12 Schools

Kinngait and Iqaluit schools are closed for in-school instruction until further notice.

• In Stage 4, all instruction will be conducted remotely. All schools are closed to students, staff, and the public. School staff will regularly communicate with all students.

Early Learning and Child Care

Kinngait and Iqaluit childcare facilities are closed until further notice.

 

 

Department of Economic Development and Transportation Services

Iqaluit Motor Vehicles

The Iqaluit Motor Vehicles office has modified their operations due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Essential motor vehicle services are available in-person by appointment or remotely through phone at 867-975-7840, email at @email and the motor vehicles website at www.gov.nu.ca/motor_vehicles.

Visit www.gov.nu.ca/motor_vehicles to download application forms for these services:

• General Identification Card:  Renewals, and Replacements.
• Requests for Driver’s Abstracts, Vehicle Searches, and Accident Reports.
• Driver’s Licence: Renewals, Upgrades, Downgrades and Replacements.
• Vehicle Registration: Renewals, Replacements, Transfers, and New Vehicles.

The following non-essential motor vehicle services are not available until further notice:

• Driver’s examinations.
• Licence transfers from other jurisdictions.
• Photo replacements (if previous photo is more than 6 years old).
• First time issuance of driver’s licences and general identification cards.

The Small Business Support Program

The Small Business Support Program is offering additional funding for small businesses in Nunavut who continue to be adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Non-repayable funding of up to $5,000 is available to subsidise eligible business expenses including insurance or licensing fees, office rentals, utilities or non-refundable business expenses for goods that are unusable due to the pandemic. 

All types of small businesses are encouraged to apply including artists, craftspeople, retailers, tourism operators, and harvesters. Businesses or entrepreneurs with less than $500,000 in gross sales or fewer than ten employees are eligible for funding.

Applicants must submit a completed application package that includes:

• Small Business Support Program Relief Form
• Small Business Support Program Application Form
• A short explanation of how the business has been affected by the pandemic.

For more information and assistance with applying, visit www.gov.nu.ca/sbsp and contact your local Community Economic Development Officer or Regional Economic Development Manager.

 

 

Department of Environment Services

Ongoing services:

The Department of Environment continues to provide services Nunavut-wide as usual, following recommended public health measures.

The department will continue to respond to problem wildlife and spills:

• For wildlife response in Kinngait, call 867-897-0123 (RCMP), 24 hours a day.
• For wildlife response in Iqaluit, call 867-222-0167, 24 hours a day.
• All spills are to be reported to the Nunavut Spill Line at 867-920-8130, 24 hours a day: https://www.gov.nu.ca/environment/documents/spill-response.

Closed/Cancelled/Suspended Services:

The wildlife office and park visitor centre in Kinngait, and the wildlife office and parks office in Iqaluit are closed to the public until further notice.

 

 

Nunavummiut’s health is our shared responsibility! Remember: wash your hands and surfaces, practice social distancing, listen to the advice of health officials, and stay home if you’re sick.