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That’s when the risk of respiratory infections is highest, Dr. Penny Ballem said.
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July 8, 2022 • 20 hours ago • 4 minutes of reading • 55 comments Dra. Penny Ballem, executive head of BC’s COVID-19 immunization program. Photo of Herman Thind / Government of BC / PNG
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Get ready to roll up your sleeves again.
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BC health officials will launch a vaccination campaign for second booster injections for millions of British Colombians aged 12 and over in the fall, even though the province’s third wave of Omicron infections is already underway.
BC plans to offer this second round of booster vaccines to the general population starting in September, following the recommendation of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization and possibly using bivalent vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna that are currently awaiting regulatory approval from Health Canada .
“The best thing to do is wait until fall,” Dr. Penny Ballem, executive head of BC’s immunization campaign, told a news conference Friday.
Ballem said the fall season is when the risk of exposure to respiratory illness is highest and when people move indoors with fewer opportunities to maintain physical distance. “That’s when the risk is highest and that’s the strongest recommendation of when we want you to get the fall reinforcement,” he said.
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Like previous campaigns, the fall reinforcement campaign will be deployed largely based on age and priority will be given to those who need it most.
Updates are expected to be sent to British Colombians starting Monday, informing them of the recommended guidelines and encouraging them to register to get their vaccine in the fall.
The province said it is ready to give reinforcements before September to those it considers have special circumstances to justify a vaccination earlier, Ballem said.
Current vaccines do not fit the dominant variant of Omicron COVID-19, while bivalent vaccines, both mRNA vaccines, which are likely to be available in the fall, are designed to be effective against the original strain and against the original strain. soca Omicron.
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“The promoters have helped us move from the crisis phase of a year, a year and a half ago … to more stable long-term management of this pandemic,” said Dr. Martin Lavoie, provincial health officer in functions.
But there are many unknowns about the launch, including how long it will take Health Canada to approve bivalent vaccines, said Dr. Horacio Bach, a clinical assistant professor at UBC.
He said Health Canada’s approval for a new drug usually takes four to six months.
“I don’t expect (a possible new vaccine) to be available until the end of the year,” he said.
The logistics of launching a fourth boost for those over 12 will likely take months, he said, and BC will have to reopen convention centers and venues to accommodate the numbers.
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But Bach said the original version of the vaccines, formulated for Omicron precursors, has been shown to offer “very little or no protection” against the Omicron BA.5 variant in Israel, where second reinforcements were launched. in January.
“Will we vaccinate a population with a vaccine that won’t work?” He said.
Caroline Colijn, Research Chair of Canada 150 in Mathematics for Evolution, Infection and Public Health, SFU, said we may not have enough information to decide whether to opt for immediate reinforcement or whether we expect autumn reinforcement , but this is not the case for public health officials. guilt.
“We don’t know what will happen to the world” or how COVID will change in the future, he said.
Meanwhile, both scientists said it is important to continue using masks in crowded indoor spaces, socializing outdoors or with the windows open, washing and disinfecting our hands frequently, and taking precautions to limit spread to ourselves and others.
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The news comes a day after hospitalizations for COVID-19 in BC increased by 35 percent compared to the previous week. The independent BC COVID-19 Modeling Group said the province is in the hands of Omicron’s third wave, which is expected to peak in August.
Lavoie said health officials expect to see fluctuations in the number of cases and hospitalizations, but indicated there was no cause for alarm.
BC had withstood the second wave of Omicron and “we did pretty well,” he said.
Most people with severe cases of COVID-19 are usually 70 years of age or older or have a compromised immune system. This high-risk population already had a second booster, so advancing the general population vaccination campaign before the fall will not do much good. “We’re at our best in terms of what we can achieve there,” he said.
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Lavoie said people still have a role to play in helping curb the transmission of COVID-19, including washing their hands, keeping their distance and wearing masks, though none of those measures are required in BC.
Health officials did not rule out the return of COVID-19 restrictions, but said they are not needed right now. “We’re not there yet,” Lavoie said.
About 91 per cent of British Colombians have received two doses of a vaccine against COVID-19 and are considered fully vaccinated.
People 12 years of age and older have already been offered a booster shot. Nearly 60 per cent have received this additional dose, leaving some 1.3 million Colombian Britons who have not yet received this booster dose.
A second booster vaccine, available in the spring, was offered to vulnerable populations, including the elderly and immunocompromised individuals. About 64 percent of this segment has received this reinforcement.
chchan@postmedia.com
slazaruk@postmedia.com
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