COVID-19 immunization underway

By Sean Feagan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in Alberta and vaccination is now underway.

An initial 3,900 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine were received on Dec. 14. 

The province has now started its phased immunization program. Phase 1 includes the vaccination of long-term care residents and staff, First Nations people over 65, seniors 75 and older and health care workers.

For now, the vaccine must be administered at two delivery sites, in Edmonton and Calgary. The first to be immunized were a group of health-care workers including respiratory therapists, intensive care unit (ICU) physicians and staff, and eligible long-term care and supportive living facility workers.

“These first immunizations are a testament to all the hard work that’s been done, and continues to be done, to bring the vaccine to Albertans so we can protect our most vulnerable and save lives,” said Tyler Shandro, Alberta Minister of Health.

The province is receiving an additional 25,350 doses of the Pfizer vaccine during the week of Dec. 21. As more shipments arrive in the new year, more people in the Phase 1 priority population will be immunized, including seniors. 

The Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at extremely low temperatures, so ultra-cold freezers are now installed at eight locations in Alberta. It is expected to be joined by the Moderna vaccine in early January, pending federal approval.

Alberta anticipates receiving enough doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to immunize up to 435,000 Albertans who are most at-risk, between January and March 2021.

Phase 2 is projected to start by April 2021 and will also prioritized populations. However, Phase 2 eligibility has yet to be announced. 

Phase 3 will involve providing vaccinations to the rest of Albertans, starting in fall 2021. 

To plan and prepare for the vaccine roll out, the Alberta government has appointed a COVID-19 vaccine task force, chaired by the province’s deputy minister of municipal affairs, retired Lt.-Gen. Paul Wynnyk.

This task force is overseeing the province’s immunization delivery program to ensure the ethical, timely and effective distribution of vaccines across the province, according to a government news release. It will include expertise in federal-provincial relations, health and clinical domains, public health and immunization, ethics, and information technology and data.