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TORONTO, April 19 (Reuters) - Ontario Premier Doug Ford said
on Monday the province expects to face a delay in the supply of
AstraZeneca Plc COVID-19 vaccine, dealing another blow
to its efforts to contain a punishing third wave of the
pandemic.
"In addition to the delayed and cut Moderna shipments, the
Premier was notified today by our officials to be prepared for
delays to two shipments of AstraZeneca expected from the federal
government later this month and next," a statement from Ford's
office said.
Canada's most-populous province said on Sunday it would
lower the minimum age for recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine
to 40 from 55..
Ontario announced 4,447 new cases on Monday, with a 10.5%
positivity rate and 19 more deaths. The rising caseload - 755
COVID-19 patients in intensive care on Monday - has pushed the
province's hospitals to the brink.
On Friday, the government announced measures including
closing its borders with the provinces of Quebec and Manitoba.
But the following day it reversed its decision to close
playgrounds and amended its granting of extra powers to police
to enforce a stay-at-home order.
Moderna Inc said last week that vaccine shipments
to Canada would be cut to 650,000 doses from 1.2 million.
Before Ontario decided to lower the age group for
AstraZeneca vaccines, doctors and pharmacists had expressed
concern that not enough people were signing up to take the
AstraZeneca shot, citing blood clot fears. Two people in Canada
have developed clots after receiving the shot and are
recovering.
Nadjla Banaei, client care coordinator at the South
Riverdale Community Health Centre in Toronto, has had several
clients express concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine. They may
have underlying health conditions and worry about what they have
read, she said.
"We've had several people say: 'No, no thanks, we'll wait
for Pfizer and Moderna,'" Banaei said.
The move to lower the age group expands the pool of
potential AstraZeneca recipients but does not necessarily quell
fears around it, she said.
"Why did they drop the age all of a sudden? What are we
supposed to communicate to people? ... Of course, with all these
changes, people are going to be hesitant."
Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu said over the weekend
that the provinces were free to offer AstraZeneca to anyone over
18.
Alberta and Manitoba have also said they would lower the
age.
(Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny; Editing by Denny Thomas and
Peter Cooney)
