Today (Friday, December 24), Newfoundland and Labrador has 85 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the last media update on December 23. Contact tracing by Public Health is underway and anyone considered a close contact has been advised regarding quarantine according to current guidelines.
In the Eastern Health region:
- Nine under 20 years of age;
- Twenty-eight between 20-39 years of age;
- Three between 40-49 years of age;
- Five between 50-59 years of age;
- One between 60-69 years of age; and
- One 70 years of age and above.
There are 18 females and 29 males. All are under investigation.
In the Central Health region:
- One between 20-39 years of age;
- One between 40-49 years of age;
- Two between 50-59 years of age;
- Three between 60-69 years of age; and
- One 70 years of age and above.
There are three females and five males. Six are contacts of previously known cases and two are under investigation.
In the Western Health region:
- Ten under 20 years of age;
- Six between 20-39 years of age;
- Seven between 40-49 years of age;
- One between 50-59 years of age;
- One between 60-69 years of age; and
- One 70 years of age and above.
There are 13 females and 13 males. Four are contacts of previously known cases and 22 are under investigation.
In the Labrador-Grenfell Health region:
- Three between 20-39 years of age; and
- One between 40-49 years of age.
There are two females and two males. All four are under investigation.
There have been 10 new recoveries – one in the Eastern Health region, six in the Central Health region and three in the Western Health region, and 2,098 people have recovered. There is one person in hospital in the Eastern Health region because of COVID-19.
There are currently 389 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. The regional breakdown of the active cases is as follows:
- Eastern Health – 198
- Central Health – 83
- Labrador-Grenfell Health – 7
- Western Health – 101
To date, 376,214 tests have been administered. People can check their COVID-19 test results online here.
As part of the ongoing investigations into recent cases, Public Health is asking anyone who visited several locations, listed on the COVID-19 website here, to arrange COVID-19 testing. To arrange testing, complete the online self-assessment and referral tool available here or call 811.
People who visited these locations and currently have symptoms of COVID-19 are required to isolate until 24 hours after their symptoms resolve and they receive a negative test result. People who visited these locations and do not currently have symptoms of COVID-19 are not required to isolate until they receive a negative test result. While awaiting their test result, they should monitor for symptoms and isolate should any symptoms develop.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include:
- Fever, including chills or sweats;
- A new or worsening cough;
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing;
- Runny, stuffy or congested nose;
- Sore throat or difficulty swallowing;
- Headache;
- Loss of sense of smell or taste;
- Unusual fatigue or lack of energy;
- New onset of muscle aches;
- Loss of appetite;
- Vomiting or diarrhea for more than 24 hours; and,
- Small red or purple spots on hands and/or feet.
Anyone in the province, regardless of their vaccination status, should get tested if they are experiencing even just one of the symptoms of COVID-19 listed above. Do not assume it is just a cold. There has been community spread and outbreaks across the country because people were mildly symptomatic and did not get tested or limit their activity. It is essential to find any cases of COVID-19, so that Public Health can do their job effectively and contain the spread of the virus as much as possible.
Due to the extremely high volume of testing currently underway in all regions, there may be some delay in contacting individuals testing positive with COVID-19. Only negative test results are provided through the online Patient Results Portal, and patients testing positive will be contacted by a representative from Public Health. However, please note that when checking the Patient Results Portal, you must check the test date listed next to the test result, as all past negative COVID-19 results continue to display. If you have been tested for COVID-19 previously, it is extremely important that you check the test date so that a past negative test result is not mistaken for your current result which may not yet be available.
Wearing a face mask that covers the nose and mouth is required in public indoor settings for everyone ages five and over. Information on the Public Health guidance on masks can be found at www.gov.nl.ca/covid-19/public-health-guidance/guidance/masks/. In places where masks are not required, wearing a mask is strongly recommended, even when seated and/or physically distanced from other people.
All travelers coming to Newfoundland and Labrador, including Newfoundland and Labrador residents, are required to fill out a travel form found here. The travel form can be completed up to 30 days prior to the travel date. Please submit proof of your COVID-19 vaccination by uploading it to your form. Further information for those travelling to the province, including isolation and testing requirements, can be found here.
Anyone who visited a post-secondary institution elsewhere in Canada or internationally in the 14 days prior to their arrival in Newfoundland and Labrador will be required to have a PCR test upon arrival to the province. These travellers can book a PCR test through the online assessment and referral tool on the COVID-19 website. If these travellers opt not to be tested, they will need to isolate for 14 days.
All of Newfoundland and Labrador has now moved to Alert Level 3. This decision will be reassessed on January 10, 2022 to determine if the Alert Level can change at that time.
Under Alert Level 3:
- Weddings, funerals, burials, religious and cultural ceremonies are limited to 100 people or 50 per cent of venue capacity, whichever is less.
- Public visitations are permitted, with one household bubble visiting at a time. Wakes are prohibited.
- Performance spaces, cinemas and bingo halls are closed.
- Fitness facilities, swimming pools, arenas, and dance studios are permitted to open, with a maximum capacity of 100 people or 50 per cent capacity per room or ice surface, whichever is less. Physical distancing between households must be maintained.
- Restaurants are open at 50 per cent capacity with physical distancing. Bars and lounges are closed.
- Amateur sport and recreation activities are limited to team practice and training only. Competition and training with other teams, even within the association is not permitted.
- Informal gatherings such as those in the home are limited to your household’s Steady 20. We ask every household to have no more than 20 close, consistent contacts.
- Anyone that is medically vulnerable and older individuals, should be extra cautious, especially those that have not had their COVID-19 booster. If you fall in this category, limit your contacts to your close friends and family with whom you usually spend time.
- With regard to travel within the province, we recognize that this is an important time for families to be together, and some loved ones may need support this time of year. We also recognize that families may want to travel to their cabins and cottages to celebrate Christmas and travel for these reasons is acceptable. If you travel, please be cautious and keep your contacts low. The more movement of people we have within the province, the more spread of the virus we will see.
- It is strongly recommended that employers support employees to work from home, where possible.
Changes are being made to guidance for case and contact management. Anyone that has been identified as a close contact of a case and who is fully vaccinated must isolate for seven days. This is a temporary measure, recognizing that our province is in the early stages of dealing with the Omicron variant. Our Self-Isolation Assessment Tool can help you determine if you need to self-isolate, but you should always follow the advice given to you when contacted by public health officials.
The required interval for booster doses has been reduced to 22 weeks. This applies to everyone aged 18 and older. The province has received increased vaccine supply and appointments will open up as soon as these are distributed to clinics, pharmacies, physicians and nurse practitioners.
All fully vaccinated travellers arriving in Newfoundland and Labrador after 3:00 p.m. on December 21, need to isolate for five days upon arrival. The day of arrival in the province counts as ‘Day 0’. They will need to take a rapid test every day for five days and, if they are all negative, they can leave isolation after five full days or 120 hours have passed since their arrival.
Unvaccinated and partially vaccinated travellers will also be provided with rapid test kits at their point of entry. Completing the rapid tests is voluntary but strongly recommended for these travellers. Unvaccinated and partially vaccinated travellers will still be required to quarantine and test as they have previously.
Anyone arriving in the province that has visited a post-secondary campus outside the province in the last 14 days and who is fully vaccinated must abide by these new isolation requirements and are also required to have an arrival PCR test. If both the PCR test and five rapid tests are negative, they can leave isolation after five full days have passed.
Children between ages five and 11 that are not fully vaccinated and are travelling with parents or guardians that are fully vaccinated, will also need to self-isolate for five days and complete five rapid tests. After five days, they will then follow modified self-isolation until 14 days have passed. It is not mandatory for children under five to have a test, as long as the parents or guardians take their rapid tests. They can leave full isolation with their parents and continue on modified self-isolation until 14 days have passed.
Rotational workers that are fully vaccinated will need to book a PCR test as soon as possible upon arrival, take a rapid test each day for five days, and can follow modified self-isolation for five days. Provided their rapid tests are negative, they can end modified self-isolation on day five.
Unvaccinated travellers must still isolate until they receive a negative PCR test on day seven or later, and are then subject to modified self-isolation for the remaining 14 days.
More details on current travel restrictions can be viewed here.
The most up to date vaccine data and the number of vaccine doses administered is on the provincial COVID-19 data hub. Information on COVID-19 vaccines for Newfoundland and Labrador is available online here. Additional information on the COVID-19 vaccination rollout is on the websites for each of the regional health authorities:
Eastern Health
Central Health
Western Health
Labrador-Grenfell Health
Please continue following the proven Public Health measures in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. People are encouraged to download COVID Alert to help reduce the spread of the virus. It is available free through the Apple or Google Play app stores.
For the most up-to-date information related to COVID-19, please visit www.gov.nl.ca/covid-19.
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Media contact
Nancy Hollett
Health and Community Services
709-729-6554, 327-7878
nancyhollett@gov.nl.ca