AstraZeneca Age Eligibility Dropped To 40 Plus Age Group
First they announced changes to the ages allowed to receive AstraZeneca vaccine in Alberta and a few days later they announced the same for those wanting the vaccine in Saskatchewan.
But in the end it may not really matter to most who did it first as the Province announced they were working to drop the ages the AstraZeneca vaccine can be administered from 55 + to those who are 40 years of age and above.
Commencing April 28th the AstraZeneca vaccine has been approved to be administered to those who are 40 years of age or older.
Wait times were minimal and the lines were basically non-existent at a recent drive-thru AstraZeneca drive-thru clinic for those 55+ in Moose Jaw - MJ Independent file photo
AstraZeneca will be the vaccine of choice at mass immunization clinics such as walk-in and drive-thru clinics effective April 28th based upon the anticipate vaccine supply available.
AstraZeneca’s COVID - 19 vaccine has been controversial to some after it was tied to extremely rare cases of blood clots developing in the legs which for a time restricted the vaccine to those 55 + where the problem was basically non-existent.
Many who were 55 + decided not to take the AstraZeneca vaccine and resorted to a practice of vaccine shopping to hopefully be vaccinated with Pfizer’s or Modern’s vaccines.
Many of those younger than 55 years of age expressed frustration about not being able to be vaccinated with the vaccine those who were eligible to receive turned down.
After being put on hold Health Canada studied the AstraZeneca vaccine and approved it for use on those 40 and older.
Dropping the age to lower than 55 years to receive the AstraZeneca was a major concern for many watched walk-in clinics and drive-thru clinics sit virtually unused.
Saskatchewan is currently working towards the benchmark of opening vaccine eligibility to all residents ages 40 and over in order to reduce the risk of severe outcomes of COVID-19.
“To date, residents ages 40 and over who have contracted COVID-19 have seen the most severe outcomes, accounting for 84 per cent of total hospitalizations and 96 per cent of total deaths.”
Once COVID-19 vaccine eligibility has been opened to all residents ages 40 and over, Saskatchewan will prioritize access to the COVID-19 vaccine through mass-vaccination settings to remaining prioritized first-responders (currently targeted with mobile vaccination units) along with additional front-line workers ages 16+, depending on vaccine product, including:
Police officers
Firefighters
Front-line healthcare workers with direct patient contact employed by the SHA or private employers (including dentists, optometrists, chiropractors)
Teachers and educational staff working directly with students
Correctional staff
Border security officers
Eligible workers will require proof of employment from their employer prior to attending mass vaccination sites. Eligibility for these groups will be announced once all residents ages 40+ are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. Details on booking appointments will be provided next week, prior to additional priority groups becoming eligible.
Following the eligibility of prioritized groups of workers, Saskatchewan will continue with the age-based system in opening vaccine eligibility to the remaining population decreasing in age from 40-16.