Advertisement

B.C. health officials recommend a fall booster for COVID-19

Click to play video: 'B.C. to offer fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine in the fall'
B.C. to offer fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine in the fall
B.C. health officials say we're seeing a rise in the Omicron BA.5 variant. They are also now recommending a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for everyone over the age of 12 but not until the fall. Aaron McArthur has more. – Jul 8, 2022

B.C. health officials Friday issued a recommendation that people 12 and older receive a fall booster for COVID-19 in the fall.

This comes as B.C. is seeing a rise in the Omicron BA.5 variant, Acting Provincial Health Officer Dr. Martin Lavoie said Friday.

Click to play video: 'Acting provincial health officer Dr. Martin Lavoie explains B.C.’s booster rollout plan'
Acting provincial health officer Dr. Martin Lavoie explains B.C.’s booster rollout plan

Details are still being released but officials say everyone 65 and over will be receiving an invite first and then everyone from age 12 to 64 in an age-based rollout.

Story continues below advertisement

Residents 11 years old and under are not eligible for any booster shot.

Lavoie is urging anyone over the age of 70 who are eligible for the second booster dose to get the injection soon. They would have received an invite to do so.

Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday.

Get weekly health news

Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Dr. Penny Ballem, executive lead of the B.C. immunization rollout said Friday they are hoping that a vaccine for children from six months to five years old will be approved by the end of July and then those vaccine appointments will be rolled into the other child immunization clinics.

The advantage of getting the shot this fall is that new Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are expected to be more tailor-made to fight Omicron variants, she said.

Story continues below advertisement

For those who have had their third shot, Ballem said the risk will be highest in the fall when COVID-19 will be circulating with other respiratory illnesses.

“Fall is the best time to get your next shot.”

However, Ballem said people who feel they need their second booster now can contact health authorities and they will get their shot.

Click to play video: 'New Omicron subvariant of COVID-19 expected to become dominant in B.C. soon'
New Omicron subvariant of COVID-19 expected to become dominant in B.C. soon

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) has already recommended vaccine booster shots this fall.

While 2.8 million British Columbians have received a third dose of the vaccine, Health Minister Adrian Dix said earlier in the week an additional 1.3 million people are eligible for their third dose right now in the province and have not yet received it.

In June, federal health officials urged Canadians to get booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in advance of the possible resurgence of the virus in the fall.

Story continues below advertisement

On June 30, Canada’s chief health officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, said case counts were stable or declining in most parts of the country. However, the highly-transmissible Omicron subvariant BA.5, is now driving another wave of infections.

This is the seventh COVID wave since the start of the pandemic and the third driven by Omicron, Canadian health officials said.

Click to play video: 'NACI releases new COVID-19 booster guidelines'
NACI releases new COVID-19 booster guidelines

In B.C. more than 225,000 doses COVID-19 vaccine are set to expire at the end of July.

Another 430,000 of Pfizer’s Comirnaty doses are set to expire before Nov. 30, and close to 40,000 of its pediatric vaccine doses will expire before Sept. 30.

Story continues below advertisement

B.C. is in the midst of a third wave of Omicron, which is expected to increase rapidly in the coming weeks, one COVID-19 modelling expert said last week.

Dr. Sarah Otto, an evolutionary biologist and professor at the University of British Columbia, said at the Evolution Conference in Ohio last week that the BA.5 variant is circulating in more communities once again and she is predicting the third wave will reach its peak sometime next month.

-With files from the Canadian Press

Sponsored content

AdChoices