Rest of P.E.I.'s first doses will be Pfizer, Moderna, premier says

Premier Dennis King suggested in the legislature Wednesday P.E.I. will follow the lead of other provinces in terms of how it deals with the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine.

And those other provinces are increasingly pausing their AstraZeneca shots.

"We have a tremendous influx of vaccine coming that is mRNA, which is Pfizer and Moderna," King said during question period, when asked whether Islanders who received a first dose of AstraZeneca will get a second.

"Quebec is now using the mRNA vaccine for a second dose for those who had their first dose of AstraZeneca," King said.

"I think that we would probably see the rest of the country move toward that as well."

Canadian health officials are now reviewing the emerging research on mixing various COVID-19 shots as multiple provinces pause delivery of AstraZeneca and gear up to start swapping in different brands for second doses.

Ultimately King said these decisions are up to Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison, expected to provide further details Thursday at her weekly briefing.

N.S. latest to halt vaccinations

On Wednesday, Nova Scotia became the latest province to announce it was pausing delivery of AstraZeneca, as the future of that vaccine in Canada is increasingly called into question over concerns about rare but severe blood clots connected to the shot.

P.E.I. paused delivery of the vaccine on March 29 in response to those concerns. The province had been providing the vaccine through pharmacies to people aged 18 to 29 who worked with the public.

The province then resumed AstraZeneca shots later in April, offering them to residents 55 and older following the latest advice from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization.

However P.E.I. has now switched to providing the Moderna vaccine through pharmacies, and King said everyone who receives their first dose between now and the end of June will receive one of the mRNA vaccines.

"I think that's the way we're going, quite honestly," he said in response to a question from interim Liberal Leader Sonny Gallant.

Vaccinations could be provided in schools

King said the province is on track to meet its target of providing first doses of the vaccine by the end of June to 80 per cent of the eligible population, and may even get there sooner.

He said appointments for second doses, which are currently being booked for 12 weeks after the first shot, could move forward as much as six weeks after the first shot is administered, as the province continues to ramp up its vaccination rate, which he said was currently approaching 10,000 doses per week.

And he said to reach schoolchildren age 12 and up, the province "has talked about actually working with public health to go to schools in junior high to do those vaccinations in schools."

The premier's office rebuffed requests for further details, saying as the premier did during question period that those will be provided Thursday by the chief public health officer.

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