Stay informed with the LNN Daily Newsletter
Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw. (Government of Alberta)

Province expands asymptomatic COVID-19 testing to all pharmacies wanting to take part

Jul 30, 2020 | 3:54 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The Government of Alberta has released Thursday’s report on COVID-19, detailing the numbers over the past 24 hours.

113 new cases were confirmed across the province, bringing the total to 10,716. Of those, 1,408 cases are active while 9,113 people have recovered.

11 of the new cases were in the South Health Zone. This includes four new infections in Lethbridge, three each in Cardston County and the M.D. of Taber, and one in the County of Warner.

Another five Albertans, all residents of the same continuing care centre in Edmonton, have died from COVID-19. To date, the virus has claimed the lives of 195 people in the province.

91 people are currently hospitalized and 18 have been admitted to intensive care units (ICU).

Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw says one of the biggest strengths Alberta has had during the pandemic is wide-scale testing.

More than 676,000 tests for the virus have been completed among 566,000 different Albertans, including 8,700 that were done in just the past day.

Following a trial that started in June, the province is expanding asymptomatic testing being offered at pharmacies.

“This pilot was initially kept small to allow us to refine the process involved in working with the pharmacies, collecting swabs, and transporting and testing the samples.”

“This project was a success. More than 10,000 people were safely tested at the pilot pharmacies in the last month,” adds Hinshaw.

As a result of this success, the program will now be available to all pharmacies in Alberta if they choose to partake and meet regulatory requirements.

It will likely take a few weeks before an expanded number of pharmacies will be able to offer testing.

A list of all pharmacies providing testing can be found online at the Alberta Blue Cross website here. As of this publication, none have completed the process.

“Only people with no symptoms and no known exposure to COVID-19 can be tested at a pharmacy,” says Hinshaw.

If you are showing symptoms of the virus or have a known exposure, you are asked to instead book a testing appointment through the Alberta Health Services website or by calling 811.

The regional breakdown for COVID-19 in Alberta is a follows:

  • Calgary zone – 6,470 cases, 655 active
    • 114 deaths
    • 235,323 tests
  • South zone – 1,641 cases, 148 active
    • 16 deaths
    • 40,924 tests
  • Edmonton zone – 1,629 cases, 278 active
    • 47 deaths (five new)
    • 186,406 tests
  • North zone – 551 cases, 118 active
    • 17 deaths
    • 47,202 tests
  • Central zone – 397 cases, 201 active
    • One death
    • 46,027 tests

The breakdown for the South Health Zone by community is as follows:

  • Brooks – 1,123 cases, three active, nine deaths
  • Lethbridge – 122 cases (four new), 48 active, two deaths
    • West Lethbridge – 47 cases (one new), nine active, one death
    • South Lethbridge – 45 cases (three new), 25 active
    • North Lethbridge – 30 cases, 14 active, one death
  • Cardston County – 84 cases (three new), 23 active, two deaths
  • Medicine Hat – 62 cases, nine active, one death
  • County of Warner – 54 cases (one new), five active, one death
  • M.D. of Taber – 37 cases (three new), 19 active
  • Fort Macleod – 33 cases, 12 active, one death
  • Cypress County – 31 cases, zero active
  • Lethbridge County – 26 cases, nine active
  • County of Newell – 23 cases, three active
  • M.D. of Pincher Creek – 22 cases, 10 active
  • County of Forty Mile – 12 cases, three active
  • Crowsnest Pass – Two cases, one active