The provincial government announced today that vaccination appointments for children aged five to 11 will be open for booking beginning tomorrow morning, Nov. 24, at 8 a.m.
Open appointment slots will begin on Nov. 26 and will be available at 120 Alberta Health Services facilities as well as four pharmacies throughout the province. Appointments can be booked by calling 811 or visiting alberta.ca\vaccine.
The Wheel has reached out to AHS media relations personnel for comment and has not yet been able to confirm locations of appointments in Okotoks at this time.
The newly eligible five to 11 population represents 391,000 Albertans, Premier Jason Kenney said during the announcement on Nov. 23. This expands vaccine eligibility to 94 per cent provincewide.
For children to be fully vaccinated, they will need two doses of the shot, eight weeks apart. AHS recommends that children should wait at least two weeks between getting the COVID-19 vaccine and the seasonal flu shot or routine childhood immunizations.
The pediatric vaccine was approved by Health Canada on Nov. 19, following a regulatory review. It was shown to be 90.7 per cent effective in preventing COVID-19 with no reported serious side effects, according to AHS.
The doses received by young Albertans are one-third of a regular dose of Pfizer – 10 mg per dose, as opposed to 30 mg per dose.
During the press conference, Kenney said children under 12 would not be subject to the Restriction Exemption Program, and that there is no deadline or requirement being placed on parents to vaccinate children aged five to 11 at this time.
Kenney, along with Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw and Health Minister Jason Copping encouraged parents to seek additional information about childhood vaccination if they have questions or concerns.
Inquires can be directed to family doctors, pharmacists or by calling 811. AHS also provides answers to frequently asked questions on the government website.
On Nov. 30, Dr. Hinshaw will be hosting a telephone town hall to provide additional information and answer questions about COVID-19 vaccinations for children. For more information, or to register, click here.
