Nova Scotia reveals projected dates by age group to get COVID-19 vaccine

In a technical update Tuesday, Nova Scotia provided new details on its age-based COVID-19 vaccine rollout plan.

The province also said it is expecting to receive over 800,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine between April and June.

Here’s where the provincial immunization plan stands as of Tuesday:

Vaccine supply update

From December to March, Nova Scotia will have received 200,250 doses of COVID-19 vaccine. Of those, 138,270 doses were received in March alone, including an additional 81,000 doses, which are expected to arrive in the last week of March.

In mid-February, the provincial supply was not only impacted by delays in shipments of the vaccines, but the federal government also re-routed some Moderna vaccines for Nova Scotia to the northern territories.

This month the province received 94,770 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, 30,500 doses of Moderna, and 13,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine.

“Supply is still unpredictable and fluctuations are common,” the province said in the briefing.

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In the next three months, the province said it’s expecting to receive 801,450 doses.

In April, the province is expecting the following shipments:

• 105,300 doses of Pfizer vaccine
• 50,000 doses of Moderna vaccine
• 26,800 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine

In May, the province is expecting the following shipments:

• 107,640 doses of Pfizer vaccine
• 82,800 doses of Moderna vaccine
• 13,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine

In June, the province is expecting the following shipments:

• 108,810 doses of Pfizer vaccine
• 177,900 doses of Moderna vaccine
• 129,200 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine

Vaccine administration

As of Monday, the province has administered 60,660 doses to Nova Scotians.

According to the province, 21,856 second doses are being held in freezers and must be used by April 2.

This month, the province abandoned its initial plan on holding second doses after advice from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) to extend the time between the first and second doses was announced.

Nova Scotia Health has clinics running in 31 long-term care facilities across the province this week, as well as 10 community clinics, 25 clinics administering the AstraZeneca vaccine, six health-care worker clinics and two First Nations vaccine clinics.

The province expects to administer 36,594 doses in clinics this week.

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In a Tuesday update, the province said Phase 1 of its vaccine rollout is around 50 per cent completed and is on track to be done by the end of April.

Phase 1 included the following priority groups:

• Health staff working directly with patients in hospital or in home: 24,000 people
• Those living or working in long-term care facilities: 40,000 people
• Nova Scotians aged 80 and older: 48,000 people
• Those at increased risk including First Nations and African Nova Scotians
• Those living or working in communal settings such as shelter residents and staff

Public Health has said its goal is to vaccinate Nova Scotians as quickly and as efficiently as possible, which is also why the province will be sticking with an aged-based approach.

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Phase 2 is expected to begin in April, when all priority groups, including those over 75 years old, are expected to be vaccinated.

By mid-May, the province said it is expecting to have all of its clinics running at full capacity, being able to deliver 86,000 doses weekly.

Nova Scotia expects to have 70 per cent of its vaccine supply administered through pharmacies and primary care clinics. Community clinics are expected to deliver 29 per cent of the doses and one per cent will be administered through mobile clinics.