More Canadian Provinces Join Ontario In Expanding H1N1 Vaccine Priority List

November 20, 2009 4:49 p.m. EST

Edmonton, Alberta (AHN) - At least three more Canadian provinces have made available its Influenza A (H1N10 vaccine to all residents. In so doing, Alberta, British Columbia and Manitoba join Ontario in expanding their swine flu priority list.

Earlier this week, Ontario made the vaccine available to all Ontarians. On Thursday, Alberta Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Andrew Corriveau urged all Albertans to be inoculated against the H1N1 virus to help protect them against a third wave of swine flu pandemic. He added the second wave is apparently weakening.

Corriveau said Alberta will have 500,000 doses of H1N1 vaccine next week, thus he urged resident to get protection from swine flu in the next few weeks.

By Friday, British Columbia will begin to immunize all residents who want the H1N1 shots, said BC Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall. The province opened the vaccine to all residents after it got on Thursday 258,000 doses of H1N1 vaccine, bringing to 1.16 million doses BC has already received. By next week, the province expects 640,000 more doses.

Kendall said in a statement, "I want to encourage every British Columbian who has not yet been vaccinated to now go out and get their shot as soon as possible. Becoming complacent would be a mistake and, unless we get more people immunized, there is still potential for B.C. to see as many hospitalizations and deaths in the coming weeks as we have seen to date."

Manitoba also allowed all residents to receive the H1N1 vaccine after it got 70,000 doses of adjuvanted swine flu shots this week. As of Wednesday, Manitoba had received and distributed 379,100 doses of the vaccine. It expects to get 79,000 more H1N1 doses next week.