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Some 3,900 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine will soon arrive in BC.

BC reveals COVID-19 vaccination plan

By Hannah Scott, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

Published 5:00 PST, Wed December 9, 2020

Last Updated: 2:13 PDT, Wed May 12, 2021

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BC will receive almost 4,000 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine starting next week, said provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry today.

Two frozen trays of vaccines, each containing 975 doses, will be delivered to a site in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, and a further two trays to a site in the Fraser Health region. These vaccines will begin to be administered next week at the site where they are delivered. The first to be vaccinated will be people who work in longterm care and on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response team, including in acute care. Longterm care residents will also be prioritized once vaccines can be administered off-site, at a date yet to be determined.

Between now and the end of March, the province expects to be able to immunize close to 400,000 people. After the first priority groups, seniors over 80 will be vaccinated next, as well as people at risk due to health conditions or who live in congregate settings like shelters. People experiencing homelessness will be included in this stage of vaccinations, as well as those who live in remote and isolated Indigenous communities.

While Henry said this is good news, she also remained firm: “That is not enough to stop this pandemic, it’s not enough to prevent transmission in our communities widely and stop the pandemic in its tracks.”

After March, she anticipates a variety of vaccines will be available including types that can be delivered by family doctors or pharmacies. Priority populations into the spring will be other healthcare workers and frontline workers, including firefighters and police, people who work at grocery stores and food processing plants, as well as teachers.

The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are not recommended for certain populations. They are not currently licensed for use in people under 16, and not recommended for people who are pregnant or who have compromised immune systems.

There were 619 new cases of COVID-19 in the province today, including four that are epidemiologically linked, bringing BC’s total to 39,337. Of the new cases, 121 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 384 in the Fraser Health region, five in the Island Health region, 81 in the Interior Health region, 27 in the Northern Health region and one new case in a person who normally lives outside Canada.

There are 9,329 active cases and 338 people in hospital, including 75 in critical care. In the last 24 hours there were 16 virus-related deaths. A further 11,526 people are under active public health monitoring.

One new healthcare outbreak was announced and two were declared over, leaving 65 active outbreaks in the healthcare sector, 57 of which are in longterm care or assisted living facilities and eight of which are in acute care facilities. Healthcare outbreaks are currently affecting 1,831 people, including 1,149 residents and 642 staff.

For the latest medical updates, including case counts, prevention, risks and testing, visit: http://www.bccdc.ca/ or follow @CDCofBC on Twitter.