B.C.’s top doctor says the province is now able to release where there have been COVID-19 cases because it has sufficient data.

Dr. Bonnie Henry says that was always the goal, with the top priority being ensuring the privacy of people who contract the virus.

“Early on we gave broader geographic areas because there were such small numbers. As we cumulated enough cases in the health service delivery area, we’ve released that information a few months ago, and we’re now at the point where we have sufficient numbers of cases by a smaller geographic area,” she said.

“So it does give you a sense of where people who have been diagnosed with COVID live.”

There have been 53 cases of the virus in the Kamloops area as of the end of July, though Henry cautions these numbers don’t tell where someone might have contracted the virus.

“This is one piece of information that can help people at a community level. It doesn’t tell the whole story of course, and that is why we need to put the picture together with our understanding of the outbreaks that were happening,” she added.

“We know that the clusters of cases clearly has been mostly focused in the Lower Mainland.”

Health officials are also cautioning that while there are areas with no or a low number of confirmed cases, the virus may still be circulating undetected in the community.