Effective immediately, Albertans can book appointments to receive the Janssen — or Johnson & Johnson — COVID-19 vaccine.
In a news release on Friday, the province announced Alberta has received 5,000 doses.
“Having the Janssen vaccine available in the province now gives Albertans more choice when it comes to getting protected against COVID-19,” Health Minister Jason Copping said.
“Every dose administered not only protects individuals but also our communities at large and the capacity of our health-care system.”
Due to the limited supply, the Janssen vaccine will only be administered at AHS clinics in select locations across the province.
Premier Jason Kenney has been saying some Albertans have expressed they’re waiting for the single-dose Janssen vaccine, rather than getting another brand that requires two doses.
“We have made doses available and now we need these Albertans to follow through and get vaccinated,” he said.
According to Kenney, these doses “are a start” and the province will continue to work to get more doses in an effort to get more Albertans vaccinated.
According to Friday’s COVID-19 numbers, 87.7 per cent of eligible Albertans 12 and older have at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. To date, 81.8 per cent of the same age group is considered fully vaccinated.
Alberta confirmed an additional 841 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday. Those numbers include cases confirmed on Wednesday and Thursday, as numbers weren’t released Thursday due to the Remembrance Day holiday.
Alberta confirmed 470 cases on Wednesday and 371 on Thursday.
There are now 554 Albertans in hospital receiving care for COVID-19, with 110 of those people in the ICU.
That compares with 582 in hospital and 123 of those in the ICU in Wednesday’s update.
Over the past two days, seven more COVID-19 deaths were reported to the province.
Alberta has now seen 3,171 people die from COVID-19.
As of Friday, there were 5,745 active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 329,030 Albertans have been diagnosed with COVID-19, while 320,114 have recovered.