Premier wants answers on AstraZeneca, clarifies comments on vaccine queue

Saskatchewan’s premier wants a decision on the AstraZeneca age range sooner than later.

Scott Moe was on the First Ministers’ call Wednesday, speaking with other premiers, the prime minister and Canada’s chief public health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam.

Moe said he raised his concerns during the call, including the recommended age limit for the AstraZeneca vaccine. Recently, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI), the body in charge of vaccine advice in Canada, recommended that only people older than 55 should get the AstraZeneca vaccine due to blood clot concerns. At the time, NACI said it would investigate further.

The recommendation, however, is a bit of a curveball for Saskatchewan’s vaccine rollout, which is age-based.

“We’re running into a little bit of a dilemma here in Regina with respect to the 55-and-above age category. And we’re seeing the lineup in Regina, most certainly, shrink and the attendance to that drive-through is starting to diminish,” said Moe.

Moe said he told Tam and the prime minister that the sooner NACI can analyze the data and make a “decisive statement,” the better it will be for everyone. Moe said Tam understood his concerns and would stress the need for the committee to clarify its advice. Moe said he did not feel he was putting political pressure on the process.

To remedy the lack of demand at the Regina drive-through vaccination site, Moe said the province is considering using the Pfizer vaccine, which would lower the age eligibility at the site.

On the call, Moe said they were told doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are on the way and he hopes they’ll arrive this month.

The premier also took the opportunity to encourage everyone to get the first vaccine available to them, saying he’s going to do just that.

“It really doesn’t matter to me whether it’s AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, whether it’s Pfizer or Moderna. When I have the opportunity I will grab the first one that is available,” said Moe, stressing that people will be offered a vaccine that is safe for their age group.

Sticking with age on vaccine rollout

Late Wednesday afternoon, Moe also clarified some of his statements earlier in the day regarding the province’s vaccine schedule.

He was speaking at an oil symposium and was asked about rapid testing and the vaccine rollout. Moe mused about making frontline workers a higher priority and talked about the possibility of sending mobile vaccine clinics to workers at larger workplaces.

But later on, Moe said he was only “blue-skying” on the question and reaffirmed his government’s commitment to an age-based rollout of the vaccines.

Moe said the reason Saskatchewan’s program has administered doses as quickly as it has is because of its age-based queue. He said any changes to prioritization would only happen if capacity can be preserved.

“The greatest travesty that we can perform in this province as a government and as a medical community is to allow vaccines to sit on the shelf,” said Moe.

“I understand the reasoning behind prioritizing frontline workers … but we need to keep that capacity up because a vaccine on the shelf just simply isn’t going to find our way through this.”

Moe also said mobile clinics are being used to get vaccines out to prioritized groups like those living in congregate living centres and shelters.

Discussing the possible change, Moe said the program is moving quickly enough — every adult in the province could be eligible for a shot by the end of May — that a change may not even be necessary.

“We may have an efficient-enough system at providing large numbers of vaccines to Saskatchewan people that we may be down into our, in a number of weeks, down into a lower age category and it might be more fruitful to just continue on with that vast capacity that we have shown we can provide,” said Moe.

Online booking for a COVID-19 vaccine is available to people 58 years of age and older in Saskatchewan. Those 50 and older in the north are also eligible, as well as qualifying health-care workers and those in priority groups.

The drive-through and walk-in clinics are available to people 55 and older.