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Alberta moves up AstraZeneca vaccine eligibility to 40 years & older

EDMONTON, AB – Starting Tuesday, Alberta is expanding the provincial COVID-19 vaccination program for the AstraZeneca shot.

As of April 20th, anyone who is 40 years of age and older will be eligible.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunizations (NCA) had been recommending the vaccine only be used in those 55 and older. That’s because of reports of a handful of cases of rare blood clots among the tens of millions of doses administered around the world.

But Health Canada says the vaccine is safe to use and the risk of blood clots is actually far higher among those who contract COVID-19.

Several other provinces are dropping the eligibility for AstraZeneca there too.

Premier Jason Kenney says the decision is based on the advice of Alberta’s Chief Medical Health Officer, Doctor Deena Hinshaw.

Lowering the eligibility age means over 575,000 more Albertans can be vaccinated, bringing the total eligible population to 2.3 million.

Dr. Hinshaw is recommending any Albertan who is 40 or older consider getting the AstraZeneca vaccine as soon as possible. “I know some Albertans have concerns about recent cases of blood clots. This is understandable, and it is also important to remember that these cases are extremely rare. This vaccine helps prevent the much higher risks that come from COVID-19 infection, helping to protect both you and those around you.”

People eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine can book appointment online here: Alberta COVID-19 Immunizations

Patrick Siedlecki
Patrick Siedlecki
Pat has been a mainstay in the CJOC News department from the time the station launched in 2007. He's been in the position of News Director since then and has been anchoring daily news casts as well as reporting and working behind the scenes. Community is important to him and keeping CJOC listeners and readers informed about what's happening across southern Alberta and beyond. Pat has been in radio broadcasting for the past 24 years, starting in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island in 1997 and then moving up island to Nanaimo for another few years before heading to Lethbridge in 2007. Pat grew up in the small Saskatchewan farming town of Foam Lake. After high school, he went to Western Academy Broadcasting College (WABC) in Saskatoon prior to moving to the island. Pat also spent several years broadcasting hockey in the BCHL as well as seven years as the radio voice of the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the WHL. Pat has been working at Cornerstone Funeral Home in Lethbridge as a Certified Life Celebrant and Funeral Assistant since 2016. News and sports have always been Pat's passion from the time he was a teenager and he's always been grateful to have had the opportunity to make that part of what's been a fun and long radio career!
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