Canada will have enough vaccine for those who want or need to be immunized against H1N1, officials say.
The Public Health Agency of Canada released its guidelines for provinces to use in determining who gets vaccinated first. The agency identified seven groups that would benefit the most but is leaving it up to the provinces to develop their own priority lists based on circumstances and reality.
The groups are:
n People under age 65 with chronic medical conditions.
n Pregnant women.
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n Children between the ages of six months and five years.
n People living in remote and isolated places.
n Health care workers who are part of the pandemic response team or who deliver essential services.
n Caregivers of, or people who live with, individuals who are at high risk and can’t be immunized.
n People identified as high risk.
“Canadians should know that we will have enough vaccine for everyone who needs and wants to be immunized,” said Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. David Butler-Jones. “Our focus in the coming weeks and months is to ensure that those who need it most get it first.”
The guidelines also say first responders such as police and firefighters, poultry and swine workers and anyone over age five would benefit from immunization.
The vaccine is supposed to be available by mid-November, leading some to question whether that will be early enough.
Saskatchewan updated its preparedness plan last wee, and deputy chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab said while he encourages everyone to be vaccinated, basic prevention measures are still a good defence.
Anyone with a fever, sore throat or cough should stay home for two or three days, he said, and seek medical attention if symptoms worsen.
Meanwhile, the country’s health ministers want Ottawa to pick up a greater share of the vaccination cost.
The federal government has said it will pay 60 percent of the cost of the vaccine itself but the provinces are worried about the delivery and transportation costs as well as escalating costs if the pandemic is worse than predicted.
