Anyone in B.C. who wants the COVID-19 vaccine and is eligible for it can expect to get the shot by the end of September at the latest, according to the largest immunization plan in the province’s history.
On Friday, Premier John Horgan, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Dr. Penny Ballem – who is in charge of B.C.’s vaccine rollout plan – provided a detailed timeline of when and how the vaccine will be distributed.
Dr. Henry says there are approximately 5.3 million British Columbians, 900,000 of whom are children, making them ineligible for the vaccine.
She says the remaining 4.3 million B.C. residents can all be vaccinated by September of this year.
There are four phases of the rollout plan. Phases 1 and 2 include the most vulnerable populations, with 3 and 4 including the broad public.
“The single biggest factor for death or severe illness is age,” said Horgan. “Someone over the age of 60 is five times more likely to become seriously ill or die than someone younger than 45.”
This is why the Province says the order of who will get the COVID-19 is dependant upon age, starting with the most elderly, all the way down to young adults.
In March, vaccine clinics will pop up in 172 communities around B.C., but for those more rural areas, mobile vaccine units will be deployed.
When those clinics are set up, Dr. Henry says anyone can pre-register and sign up for appointments based on age either online or over the phone.
“This is going to be and needs to be, an all of B.C. effort to make sure we can protect those most vulnerable, and everyone else,” said Dr. Henry.
From January to February, B.C. is expecting to receive a total of 800,000 doses. From April to June, 2.6 million doses are expected to land in the province and from June to September, an additional 6 million doses.
The current rollout plan is based on having the two approved vaccines in Canada, from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. B.C.’s top doctor says if another brand is approved, the rollout plan could move even faster.
Both of these vaccines require two doses per person, meaning 8.6 million injections are needed.
B.C. received early access to the vaccine in December and those doses are counted in phase 1.
By March, the province expects to have vaccinated 600,000 people, leaving approximately 4 million still needing to be immunized.
Between April and September, Dr. Henry expects 7.4 million doses to be administered.
She says there are nearly 250,000 people in B.C. who are over the age of 80 — these residents will be given the first priority.
A delay in the production of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has meant a delay in shots here in B.C. and the PHO says she hopes to start the immunization of all seniors by the end of February, despite wishing they could start earlier.
As of Friday, January 22, more than 100,000 British Columbians have been given the COVID-19 vaccine, with thousands already receiving their second dose.
Rebecca Lawrence
