The Alberta government has redoubled its efforts to bring Paxlovid treatment for COVID-19 to eligible Albertans, relaxing its testing criteria and expanding the number of healthcare professionals who can prescribe it.
The requirement for Eligible Albertans having a positive PCR test result to obtain a Paxlovid prescription has changed. Now, in some circumstances, a positive rapid test result will be acceptable, Health Minister Jason Copping announced at a news conference on Wednesday.
Additionally, the treatment can now be prescribed by doctors, nurse practitioners, and some pharmacists.
“This change will make it faster and easier to access medication and start treatment,” Copping said.
Paxlovid is a treatment given to adults with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19, but who are at increased risk of hospitalization or death.
Quick access to the medication is vital, because to be effective, it must be taken within five days of the onset of symptoms.
While a PCR test is still preferred, people can access treatment with a positive result from a prescriber-administered rapid test. They could also do a quick test at home and then have the prescribing doctor confirm the result, Copping said.
The change will be gradual to ensure that people who prescribe the drug feel comfortable doing so, a government news release said.
Albertans who do not have a family doctor, or whose health care provider is not eligible to prescribe Paxlovid, can access it through Alberta Health Services, according to the release.
69 more deaths from COVID-19
Another 69 COVID-19 deaths were reported in Alberta from April 26 to May 2, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said at Wednesday’s news conference.
The people who died were between the ages of 28 and 102, Hinshaw said.
There have now been 4,321 deaths in Alberta since the pandemic began, provincial data shows.
Meanwhile, the number of Albertans in hospital with COVID-19 continued to rise.
The data shows that there are 1,267 people in the hospital, including 46 patients admitted to the intensive care unit.
Last week, there were 1,220 in the hospital, including 47 in the ICU.
The seven-day PCR test positivity rate is 22.98 percent, which is down from 25.75 percent a week ago.
5,754 new cases of COVID-19 were reported last week. However, that number only accounts for positive PCR test results, which are not available to most Albertans.
Influenza on the rise: Hinshaw
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is being complicated by a surge in flu cases being seen in Alberta and across Canada, Hinshaw said.
More than 700 Albertans have been diagnosed with the flu this season, most of which were reported in the last two months, Hinshaw said.
Of those people, 68 went to the hospital, including three who were admitted to the ICU, he said.
“We are experiencing an increase in seasonal influenza with levels higher than at any time in the last two years,” he said.
The measures people can take to prevent the spread of the flu are similar to those that prevent the transmission of COVID-19, he said, including proper handwashing, staying home when sick and wearing masks in public places.
Reference-www.cbc.ca