‘Probable’ case of COVID-19 came back as negative, Yukon officials say

WHITEHORSE – Yukon’s top doctor says a probable case of COVID-19 flagged over the weekend has come back negative.

Chief medical officer of health Dr. Brendon Hanley says after further testing carried out by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, the case is potentially a false positive or the device used for testing detected the presence of the virus from several weeks ago.

The territory said over the weekend that the person had returned from travel to Whitehorse and was in self-isolation.

Hanley says the protocols surrounding the case worked as needed and COVID-19 tests of people who came in to contact with the individual returned with no sign of the virus.

He also defended not releasing more details about potentially infected people, such as their gender, in order to protect their identity from malicious rumours.

Yukon Premier Sandy Silver was asked about the potential for the territory to further lift its border restrictions, but says there will be no changes in the near future.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 14, 2020.