The number of serious COVID-19 infections that have sent British Columbians to hospital has seen little movement in the past week, according to data released Thursday by the BC Center for Disease Control. Hospital admissions fell to 401 people as of July 21, compared to a week earlier when 406 people in the province were hospitalized. But the number of those hospitalized in intensive care units rose from 30 to 35 weeks in the same one-week period. Twenty-nine people were reported dead while infected with COVID-19 — up from 21 reported dead a week earlier. The death total includes anyone who tested positive for COVID-19 within 30 days and then died. This calculation may include people who tested positive and then died in traffic accidents. Government figures say a total of 3,908 British Columbians have died while infected with COVID-19 — up 53 from a week earlier, despite the province reporting 29 deaths. The BC government’s process is supposed to include all deaths involving people infected with COVID-19 in the weekly death count as well as the total number of deaths. Then, at a future date, those in whom the province’s Vital Statistics Agency determines that the death was not due to COVID-19 are to be subtracted from the total number of deaths. Instead, for months the number of new deaths was lower than the number of deaths added to the total number of deaths from COVID-19. The Ministry of Health gave no explanation for this discrepancy when asked by the BIV. The ministry previously said the weekly tally of deaths “may be incomplete,” but updated figures have not been released by the BC Center for Disease Control or the province. Meanwhile, the latest government figures reveal that 921 cases of COVID-19 were detected in the last one-week period. This is down from the 1,044 cases reported a week ago. The data on new infections, however, has long been widely dismissed, and even provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry earlier this year called the information “inaccurate.” That’s because in December it began telling people who had been vaccinated and had mild symptoms not to get tested and to self-isolate. He said at the time that this was to increase testing capacity for those with more severe symptoms and those who are most vulnerable. Screening is now encouraged only in cases where knowledge of the test result could change treatment recommendations. —With files from Glen Korstrom [email protected] @report about