Health Minister Jason Copping said Alberta is watching what other provinces are doing.
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The province is still mulling giving second booster shots as warnings about the growing threat of two variants of COVID-19 mount across the country.
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But on Monday, Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping said an announcement about the fourth vaccination is expected “in the coming weeks.”
Late last week, the British Columbia government announced it would make a second round of boosters available to those 12 and older in September, but also said it would offer them now to those who want them.
On Monday, it began sending vaccination invitations to the most vulnerable seniors.
Copping said Alberta is watching what other provinces are doing after the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recommended June 29 that provinces plan to offer booster shots in the fall for people who are at increased risk, regardless of the number of booster doses they receive. I have already received.
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“Recently, the federal government published its results regarding the NACI recommendations; we’re doing an assessment of that right now in terms of fourth doses or second booster shots,” he said.
“We are watching it closely, we know that other provinces, BC and Ontario are seeing an increase (in COVID-19 infections)… we will learn from other jurisdictions.”
Unlike the province’s policy during most of the pandemic, full PCR testing is no longer being done, though Copping said sewage sampling shows slight increases in COVID-19 prevalence in Calgary and Edmonton.
“Even though it’s summer, we’re still seeing some mild early signs of sewage circulation,” he said.
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And he said that while previous infections do not bring immunity from the BA.4 and BA.5 variants of COVID-19, these and vaccines are effective in reducing serious illness.
In a tweet last Friday, the country’s public health director said infection rates in Ontario and Quebec driven primarily by BA.5 have “increased significantly,” with a 14 percent increase in hospitalizations and an increase in 13 percent in ICU admissions.
“(Booster shots) continue to be the best approach to slow the spread and protect ourselves and others! Add layers of personal precautions, especially in poorly ventilated indoor settings and/or crowded outdoor settings.” Dr. Theresa Tam tweeted.
Copping did not mention any consideration of returning to public health regulations, although he encouraged Albertans to get vaccinated for the first, second or third time.
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The provincial government has said it will follow the NACI recommendations.
Some doctors have raised concerns about how Alberta lags behind the rest of the county in COVID-19 vaccinations, with about 40.8 percent of those over the age of five having received a booster or third dose.
Earlier this month, Edmonton critical care physician Dr. Noel Gibney said that with ranks shrinking and burnout among medical staff, Alberta needs to get serious about preventing another resurgence of COVID-19.
“We really need to keep the numbers down in hospitals,” Gibney said, adding that surgeries postponed due to pandemic pressures remain a concern.
“We are going to have a hard time keeping up with these procedures; the last thing we need is another surge (COVID-19).”
When the numbers were last updated a week ago, there were 568 Albertans in the hospital with COVID-19, with 21 in the ICU.
There have been at least 4,636 deaths attributed to the disease in the province.
Twitter: @BillKaufmannjrn
