YELLOWKNIFE — The Northwest Territories government says it plans to begin testing blood samples for the presence of antibodies that develop in response to COVID-19.
The territory says testing of discarded anonymous blood samples taken from April 1 onward will help it better understand how COVID-19 has affected residents.Â
The study will be able to differentiate between antibodies that developed due to vaccination or infection.Â
The territory stopped tracking COVID-19 infections among residents when it lifted all public health measures in April.Â
While it continues to document severe outcomes from COVID-19, that information is not readily available to the public.
The territorial government says there have been 35 hospitalizations, four intensive care unit admissions and four deaths related to COVID-19 between April and August.Â
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2022.Â
The Canadian Press