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Sask. health officer confirms two 'area' cases of COVID-19

Privacy concerns about naming localities
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At today's COVID-10 update by the province, Saskatchewan's Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab was asked by the News-Optimist if he could shed light on numbers of cases of COVID-19 in the Battlefords.

Shahab said he knew of "two cases in the P.A.- Battlefords area ... two cases of community transmission." He did not have any further specifics about cases for the community. Initially, Dr. Shahab used the words "one-or two" before settling on the "two" number. 

Dr. Shahab went on to say he wanted people to remember two things. One was that COVID-19 could impact any of us, and "we have to be very careful about respecting the privacy of the individuals who test positive," said Shahab. He noted the contact investigation is done "very confidentially."

The second point Dr. Shahab made was that the risk was throughout in the province.

"It's not helpful at all now to know where those cases are in isolated communities because the risk really is everywhere. We cannot make any change of behaviour depending on this community or that community. I emphasize that point enough that we cannot use testing numbers or testing locations to guide our behavior. It really is the same no matter where we are in Saskatchewan."