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One new Manitoba COVID-19 case announced

Manitoba health officials announced another presumptive or confirmed case of COVID-19 in the province March 21 - a unidentified woman living in Winnipeg.
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Manitoba health officials announced another presumptive or confirmed case of COVID-19 in the province March 21 - a unidentified woman living in Winnipeg.

Chief provincial health officer Brent Roussin cautioned against reading too much into the number of cases detected so far at a March 21 provincial government update.

“We can't look at the day to day numbers and make anything of that,” he said. 

“Obviously, we like to see days with no cases. But seeing this, we can't make any judgment based on just having a couple days without a case.”

The new case brings the number of overall Manitoba cases up to 18, with all but one case directly linked to travel. No update was provided on the one case officials have yet to directly link to travel.

The province now has 11 COVID-19 test sites across Manitoba, including one in Flin Flon. Roussin reminded the public that test sites are not walk-in clinics and patients need to be directed to the site.

The public is encouraged to call Health Links - Info Santé. Call wait time has dropped significantly as Manitoba added an online assessment tool and additional resources to the phone service. Officials said the average wait time has dropped to 45 minutes. Earlier in the week, calls took as long as three hours to get through.

Roussin encouraged Manitobans to continue their efforts to reduce the spread including social distancing measures and frequent hand washing.

“Our strategy is for all Manitobans to understand their role, and the part that they can take so we can protect ourselves,” he said.

Manitoba declared a 30-day state of emergency on March 20, banning gatherings of more than 50 people.

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