12 new COVID-19 cases in N.S. as province urges quarantined students to get tested

Nova Scotia is reporting 12new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, as the province urges post-secondary students returning from outside of Atlantic Canada to book a test during their quarantine even if they don't have symptoms.

Nine of these cases are in the province's central zone. Seven are close contacts of previous cases and one is related to travel outside of Atlantic Canada. Another remains under investigation, according to a news release.

One case isa student at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish. The student lives on campus and has beenself-isolating.

Another case has been identified as a student at Dalhousie University in Halifax. The student lives on campus and the case remains under investigation.

There are currently 29active cases in Nova Scotia.

In Wednesday's news release, the province reminded university students who have returned to Nova Scotia after the breakto book a COVID-19 teston either their sixth, seventh or eighth day of isolation, regardless of whether they have symptoms.

Appointments can be booked up to three days in advance.

Students must self-isolate for the full 14 days, even with a negative test result. They are not allowed to attend in-person classes until their quarantine is finished.

If any student is experiencing symptoms they need to complete aself-assessmentonline or call 811.

"I want to welcome returning students and thank them for following public health protocols. I also remind asymptomatic students to get a COVID-19 test during their self-isolation," said Premier Stephen McNeilin the release.

"Staying vigilant and following all the protective measures will help keep our case numbers low as our vaccine program is rolled out across the province."

This comes a day after Nova Scotia released its plans for the vaccine, with the provincial government aiming to immunize three-quarters of residents by the end of September.

McNeilsaid during a news briefing on Tuesday that more than one million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech and the Moderna vaccine are expected to arrive between now and June, enough to vaccinate "more than half of our population."

The premier also said he was encouraged by the low number of cases in the province, but added that Nova Scotians needed to continue following the public health guidelines.

The low numbers allowedbars and restaurants to reopen to in-person dining on Monday. TheNova Scotia School Athletic Federation also announcedon its websitethat activities may restart next Monday, provided COVID-19 guidelines are followed.

Nova Scotia's labs completed 1,578tests on Tuesday.

31 new cases in New Brunswick

New Brunswick reported a record single-day increase of 31 new cases on Wednesday.

Case numbers have been climbing steadily over the last few days in the province, and New Brunswick's chief medical officer of health, Dr. Jennifer Russell, said on Wednesday that things are likely to get worse before they get better.

Russell anticipates a spike in cases within seven to 10 days related to New Year's Eve parties.

On Tuesday, when New Brunswick announced 27 new cases and rolled back to the orange zone, McNeil said he would continue to monitor the situation.

People from other Atlantic provinces are still allowed to enter Nova Scotia without the 14-day quarantine.

New Brunswick, P.E.I. and Newfoundland and Labrador have imposed isolation rules for travellers from Nova Scotia after the Atlantic bubbleburst in November.

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Fureyextended the hiatus from the Atlantic bubble for at least another month on Wednesday.

Atlantic Canada case numbers

The latest COVID-19 numbers from the Atlantic provinces are:

• Newfoundland and Labradorreported nonew cases on Wednesday. There are nineactive cases and one person is in hospital.

• New Brunswickreported a record 31new cases on Wednesday with 110 active cases.One personis hospitalized and in intensive care. Every zone of the province has been rolled back to the orange phase to deal with the growing number of cases.
  
• P.E.I.reported one new case on Tuesday and has four active cases of COVID-19.