Health officials say all New Brunswickers who want to receive a COVID-19 vaccine will be able to get at least their first shot before the end of June.
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Jennifer Russell said, with the approval of the AstraZeneca vaccine by Health Canada and advice from federal authorities to expand the intervals between the first and second dose of Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, changes to the roll-out plan are coming.
Prior to this week, health authorities recommended the second dose of both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines must be administered within 21 days of the first dose.
“While studies have not yet collected four months of data on vaccine effectiveness after the first dose, the first two months of real world effectiveness are showing sustained high levels of protection,” says the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI).
NACI recommends that “in the context of limited COVID-19 vaccine supply, jurisdictions should maximize the number of individuals benefiting from the first dose of vaccine by extending the interval for the second dose of vaccine to four months.”
“Extending the dose interval to four months allows NACI to create opportunities for protection of the entire adult population within a short timeframe. This will not only achieve protection of the adult population, but will also contribute to health equity,” the agency said in an advisory.
“This change … would enable us to get the COVID-19 vaccine into the arms of even more New Brunswickers,” Russell said in a Friday briefing.
Russell said the province will change its vaccine roll-out plan, with an update coming next week.
During March, New Brunswick will receive its first AstraZeneca vaccine shipment, carrying 10,000 doses.
“This will allow us to broaden the scope and reach of our vaccine campaign,” Russell said in the briefing. “It is my hope that we will be able to provide at least one dose to every New Brunswickers before summer begins.”
The AstraZeneca vaccine is the third approved for use in Canada. The country’s fist shipment this week brought 500,000 doses, from the Serum Institute of India.
According to NACI, it is recommended that authorities offer this vaccine to people between the ages of 18 and 64.
Shephard said an update on New Brunswick’s vaccine plan will be provided next week.
All zones moving to yellow phase
New Brunswick says all of its zones could be transitioning back to the yellow phase of COVID-19 recovery this weekend, if case numbers remain low in the province.
Russell said in the Friday briefing that the province’s trajectory indicates all zones could be ready to transition to the yellow phase.
The province reported four new cases of the coronavirus Friday. Three of the cases were located in Zone 7 (Miramichi region), and one was in the Fredericton region.
There are 33 active COVID-19 cases remaining.
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“Moving all of New Brunswick to the yellow alert level would be a significant achievement,” Russell said in Friday’s briefing.
But, Russell said she is concerned about the number of cases popping up in the Miramichi area, although the region is still on track to move to yellow.
“If there is a significant change between now and then, we will revisit the decision but currently the Miramichi will move to yellow along with the rest of the province,” she said. “Public health is ready to act very quickly when and where necessary.”
Last week, the province updated protocol for the yellow phase.
“The new yellow would have more restrictions than we previously experienced during the summer of 2020,” Russell said.
“These restrictions are required because the COVID-19 virus is still with us and is changing all the time.”
Here are the changes to previous yellow phase restrictions:
- Residents can have a ‘steady 15’ list of close contacts.
- Sports teams will be allowed to play within their league across zones, and tournaments or large events within a zone will be allowed, subject to approval of a plan
- Formal indoor gatherings will be permitted with an approved COVId-19 plan in place, as long as the venue is at 50 per cent capacity and physical distance is maintained
- Formal and informal outdoor gatherings of maximum 50 people are allowed with physical distancing in place
All restrictions under the yellow phase of COVID-19 recovery are available here.
“We expect that they will continue to change and public health restrictions will loosen as more people are vaccinated,” said Minister Shephard.
In addition, the province will be offering asymptomatic testing for residents of the Miramichi region.
Testing is being held Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the gymnasium of the Dr. Losier Middle School, 124 Henderson St., Miramichi.
Tests are done on a first-come-first-serve basis, with no appointment necessary.
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