EDMONTON — Albertans who received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in April or earlier can now book in for their second vaccination appointment.
This move bumps up the initial timeline by a week and will allow around 650,000 Albertans to book in to get fully immunized.
WATCH: Kenney, Shandro join Dr. Deena Hinshaw to provide an update on Alberta’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout plan.
Those who received AstraZeneca in April for their first dose will also be able to book in for their second shot, though Health Minister Tyler Shandro advises you to still wait 8 weeks before getting that second shot.
“We here in Alberta, we have 16 per cent of our eligible population fully vaccinated with two doses, and the rest of the country is at about 11 per cent,” said Shandro. “We’re the highest of the four largest provinces by a wide margin, and now we’re taking another step forward.”
“Since January 1, 96 per cent of all confirmed COVID-19 cases in Alberta were either in individuals who were unvaccinated or who were diagnosed within two weeks of receiving their first dose, while their immunity was, was still building,” said Premier Jason Kenney on Thursday. “The same holds true for 93 per cent of COVID-19 cases that needed hospital care, and for 88 per cent of deaths related to this disease. For those who have doubts, just look around you. There are literally millions of your neighbours and Albertans who have the vaccine now. They are well and they are safe.”
Kenney says to date, there have been fewer than 500 adverse health responses to more than three million vaccinations in the province.
“Throughout this pandemic, it has been the small things that have kept us safe,” said Dr. Deena Hinshaw. “The regular washing of hands and staying distanced. The ordering online and meeting virtually or outdoors with our friends. If you haven’t gotten a first dose yet, booking that appointment might seem like a small thing, especially when so many others are already getting a vaccine. The same goes for getting a second dose. But getting vaccinated is an example of a small action that has big consequences for your health and the health of everyone around you. Please get immunized.”
RELATED:
- Alberta enters Stage 2 of reopening Thurs.–here’s what you need to know
- Walk-in clinics open for first-dose COVID-19 vaccine appointments across Alberta
- Premier hopes Calgary, Edmonton will follow province’s lead on removing mask mandates
The premier also providing some positive numbers as the next stage of the vaccine rollout gets underway.
“Currently, there are just over 3,800 active cases (of COVID-19) in Alberta, which is a 40 per cent decrease from the first of June, when stage one began. It’s also the fewest active cases since the twenty-third of October, hospitalizations, are dropping too. There are currently 306 people in a hospital with COVID-19, with 81 being cared for in intensive care. That’s a 31 per cent decrease from when stage one began, our R-value, that rate of transmission, remains below one, and our positivity rate, that’s the percentage of folks tested who test positive, has been under 5 per cent since the second of June.”
UPDATED:
– 178 new COVID cases on 5500 tests (3.3%+)
– 138 new variant cases
– 306 in hospital (-23), inc 81 in ICU (-2)
– 6 new deaths
– 3810 active cases (-394)#yeg #yyc #ableg #covid19ab pic.twitter.com/du3vfyKUrK— Courtney Theriault (@cspotweet) June 10, 2021
As for the remainder of Thursday’s COVID-19 numbers: there were 178 new cases of COVID-19 reported following 5,500 tests. A positivity rate of around 3.3 per cent.
There were an additional six deaths reported.
