Good evening.

There were 1385 test results received by the Ministry of Health since the last update and 37 were positive for coronavirus. This gives a test positivity rate of 2.7%.

2 of the new cases are classified as imported with details as follows:

·         1 resident who arrived on  British Airways BA 159 from London on 6 April 2021 and tested positive on their Day 8 test

·         1 resident who arrived on  American Airlines AA 308 from Miami on 31 March 2021 and tested positive on their Day 14 test

12 of the new cases are classified as local transmission with known contact as associated with known cases.

The additional 23 new cases are classified as under investigation. These cases are among residents with no currently identified link to other known cases or history of travel in the past 14 days.

There were 55 recoveries and 0 deaths.

Bermuda has 2060 total confirmed positive cases. Their status is as follows.

There are 848 active cases, of which:

·         808 are under public health monitoring and

·         40 are in hospital with 8 in intensive care;

·         a total of 1195 have recovered, and

·         the total deceased is 17.

As investigations proceed, transmission categories may change.

Of the over 200,000 test results reported, the mean age of all persons tested is 43 years (median:  42 years) and the ages range from less than 1 year to greater than 100 years.

The seven-day average of our real time reproduction number is just below 1 (0.99).

Bermuda’s current WHO country status is “Community Transmission”.

Yesterday I announced that Bermuda had reached more than 2,000 positive cases. Today that number is 2,060.  2,060 people. 2,060 families who are living or have lived with health concerns about themselves and their loved ones. Asking questions like, will the symptoms be mild or severe?

2,060 people worried about the impact their diagnosis will have on others. Their extended family. Friends. Colleagues. Elderly relatives. We must continue to look beyond the numbers and see the people, understand their concerns.

We must also remember and keep in our prayers the families who have lost a loved one due to coronavirus.

Over the months and weeks, people have shared their stories with me. Told me how they have managed. How family and friends have come to their aid. The loneliness of being in Shelter in Place and, this week, during the Stay at Home Regulations. One colleague shared how her brother who lives alone had to be alone while he was sick. No one could visit. Family and friends doing what they could from outside the house. I’ve had seniors share with me their fears about seeing their children and grandchildren asking “Suppose they had the virus when they visited but they didn’t know it?”

It’s these stories and others that speak to why we have the Stay at Home Regulations this week. This is why we must not mix families at this time. The number of positive cases must drop, we have to provide the healthcare system with relief, and this includes the hospital.

I must report again today, there are 40 patients in the hospital who need medical support to battle this disease. Since yesterday’s update, and at the time of our reporting, there have been three new admissions, five people have been discharged, eight are in ICU and one patient is intubated.

We also send our prayers and thoughts to each of them and their families.

Against this backdrop, some in our community are choosing not to get vaccinated. If you have questions, visit coronavirus.gov.bm and other reputable sites. If you want firsthand knowledge about the vaccine call your doctor. Ask all the questions you have about the vaccine and whether or not you should get it.

There is no single decision process. People decide to get the vaccine because they want to protect themselves and others. Some make the decision because they want to travel when it is safe to do so. Others do it because it is the right thing for our community and they want to get back to the new level of normal.

If you haven’t already done so, register today to get vaccinated. Having the vaccine does not necessarily stop you from getting the disease but it does lessen the severity of the disease if you do get it.

To this end, I repeat my appeal to doctors in Bermuda to give us some of your time. If every doctor in Bermuda takes one or two shifts on a weekday evening or during the day on Saturday or Sunday, we will succeed in reaching our goal of community immunity by Bermuda Day – 28 May. If you can help, please send an email to Dr Brett Lefkowitz at blefkowitz@gov.bm. And, thank you to all those medical professionals who have already come forward to say they will assist.

As revised restrictions are put into place, I must restate that the UK variant of the coronavirus is extremely contagious and the symptoms can be difficult to pinpoint.  Symptoms include cough, tiredness, headache, muscle ache and sore throat. If you experience any of these symptoms please contact your doctor and make an appointment to get tested. Likewise, if you have been in contact with someone who has these symptoms, immediately make an appointment to get tested.

As a reminder, each of us has a role to play in stopping the spread of the coronavirus. Follow Public Health guidelines, wear a mask, practice good hand hygiene, maintain physical distance and download the WeHealth Bermuda app. If you haven’t already done so, register to get vaccinated – because vaccinations work.

Thank you.