by Stephen Dafoe
Sixteen hours after announcing tougher restrictions and penalties, Premier Jason Kenney announced that all Albertans aged 12 and older will be eligible to book COVID-19 vaccine appointments effective May 10. Additionally, Albertans 30 and over will be able to book an appointment starting May 6. Appointments are conditional on the province’s supply.
To date, 166 million vaccines have been administered, and the government says the expansion makes 3.8 million Albertans eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
“This is a very exciting day for Alberta and it arrives right when we need it the most. We are battling an extremely aggressive third wave of COVID-19 and we know that vaccines are our best weapon against it,” Kenney said. “By opening bookings to everybody over 12 years of age, we are taking a huge step towards stopping the spike and hopefully putting this pandemic behind us for good.”
With the Phase 3 rollout, eligible Albertans will be able to book appointments to receive an mRNA vaccine with AHS online or through 811, as well as at participating pharmacies.
Participating pharmacies can be found at Alberta Blue Cross. Appointments can be booked online at https://www.alberta.ca/covid19-vaccine.aspx .