B.C.’s health minister says the province will begin giving people a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine starting today, despite delivery delays announced by Pfizer last week.

Adrian Dix says it comes 35 days after the province began rolling out COVID-19 vaccines in the Lower Mainland, which began on Dec. 15.

“In the first week, you remember there was only four trays of the Pfizer vaccine or 3,900 doses in that week, so there will be a limited number of second doses this week, and then that number will grow in the coming weeks,” he said.

Maj.-Gen Dany Fortin, the man in charge of Canada’s vaccine rollout logistics, has confirmed that the country will not receive any doses of the Pfizer vaccine doses during the week of Jan. 25, due to delivery delays that have hit countries around the world.

“We are now seeing that our entire expected shipment is deferred for next week, and then the numbers start to pick back up in the first weeks of February,” Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin said this morning.

This delay is due to the fact that Pfizer is scaling up its European manufacturing capacity – a move that officials had said will impact the vaccine’s production for a ‘short period.’

“I spoke with Pfizer over the weekend, I insisted on equitable treatment in terms of global supply reductions that it had announced and indeed, Pfizer assured me and Canada of equitable treatment,” Procurement Minister Anita Anand said on Tuesday.

“Canada remains on track to receive the four million doses that Pfizer previously committed to, to arrive before the end of March.”

Dix says B.C. was only expecting to get 5,800 doses of Pfizer’s vaccine next week, compared to more than 24,000 this week, noting the delays will be felt the most next week, before shipments resume.

Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, says the setback is a matter of weeks, and not months. In all, she says the shortfall will be about 60,000 Pfizer doses over the coming weeks – about half of what the province was expecting to receive over that time period.

“We have been able to rearrange and look at processes that we have to make sure we are continuing with providing the first doses to those at highest risk and that we are able to start second doses at Day 35 in accordance to our plans,” she said. “That is our focus over the next couple of weeks.”

“We spent quite a lot of time over this past weekend working through how we could make it work, and then stay true to our commitment to getting those second doses into people as soon as logistically possible. We knew the process was going to change and be changing frequently. We know there’s challenges with such a large program which will go on for many weeks.”

Delays means B.C. vaccine roll-out to be tweaked slightly: Dr. Henry

Dr. Henry adds the province will be providing more first doses of the COVID vaccine in March than originally planned, with second doses being pushed to later in the month when supply increases.

“We know that this delay will temporarily slow our delivery into the next phase of at risk people, particularly into other parts of our hospital system,” she added.

“The program continues. Our focus continues to be on immunizing all people who are at the greatest risk, and that includes residents and staff who work in long-term care homes around the province.”

Henry also said she expects shipments of the vaccine to be increased at the end of February and into early March to make up for the missed doses in January, noting B.C. is still on track to dramatically increase the scope of its immunization program in April.

Long term care residents to be vaccinated by next week

As of Monday’s briefing, there were 87,346 people who received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine across British Columbia.

Henry says the province will soon finish vaccinating long term care home residents in the Lower Mainland, noting the province is on track to complete vaccinations in all long-term care homes by end of next week – depending on when vaccine arrives.

And while pointing to the delivery delays, Henry is again urging people to do their best to stop the spread of COVID-19 by keeping up with the measures they’ve been following the same precautions and rules they have been for months.

“We have the tools and it is in our control,” she said. “Let’s show each other that we remain committed to doing our part to protect our seniors and elders who have not yet had the vaccine.”

Dix meanwhile noted it has been almost a year since the first COVID-19 joint release from the province, back in Jan. 2020.

“We’ve seen through the course of the pandemic a lot of worry, a lot of fear, a lot of loss, a lot of uncertainty. While COVID-19 gives each of us every reason to experience those feelings, each and every day, I also saw from that day something else, something reassuring – resolve, spirit, strength compassion, and well fear and uncertainty,” he said.

“I think are part of every day in a pandemic. What has kept us going to seeing how British Columbians in every part of our province refuse to let fear and uncertainty rule.”

– With files from The Canadian Press

(Photo via Wikimedia)