N.S. to open booster shot appointments Monday to those aged 30 and up
CBC
Nova Scotia will open eligibility for booster shots to those aged 30 and up beginning Monday.
Premier Tim Houston said a couple of hundred thousand slots will open Monday for shots that will be delivered at pharmacies and community clinics.
The Halifax Forum will become a community vaccine clinic beginning Jan. 6, and appointments for that location will be available for booking early next week.
In the northern, eastern and western zones, clinics that serve as both testing and vaccine clinics will be opened at primary assessment centres by mid-January. The testing and vaccine appointments will be at different times of the day.
Drop-in mobile clinics will also be used in some locations.
Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Robert Strang encouraged anyone 30 and up to book a Moderna shot, called Spikevax, if possible, saying the Pfizer-BioNTech shot, called Comirnaty, will be prioritized for those under 30.
Shipments of Comirnaty are expected to be limited due to global shortages, Strang said, adding that some studies are showing that Spikevax is slightly more effective than Comirnaty as a booster shot.
People receiving boosters must wait at least 168 days after their primary series before being eligible.
Houston said the province needs people to help with the rollout, and asked for retired nurses, doctors and anyone with experience immunizing to come forward to help.
Strang echoed that call, adding that help will also be needed for non-medical roles at vaccine clinics.
The province announced 511 new cases Thursday. Twenty-five people are in hospital with the virus, including three in intensive care.
Houston said the province has reported 7,594 over the last two weeks.
A COVID-19 outbreak at Pictou Landing First Nation has resulted in 37 reported cases since Dec. 21.
Chief Andrea Paul said the virus has swept through multi-generational households — and, in several cases, the entire family has gotten sick.
When Premier Tim Houston recently raised the idea of reconsidering the province's ban on uranium exploration, the suggestion may have left some people scratching their heads.
Former Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Paul Hodgson has a couple of reasons to celebrate Family Day — and Black History Month, for that matter.
A year ago, then Gatineau mayor France Bélisle abruptly resigned, citing a hostile political climate. This week she has spoken out, offering more details of her complaints about municipal politics in Quebec.
One man is dead and three others are in police custody after a deadly assault on a Manitoba First Nation.
When Piper sends her son to school every morning, she calls out a similar refrain: "I love you, try your best, I'll be here to pick you up when school is done," hoping he will be safe and supported.
A downtown Edmonton business advocacy group is worried about how a series of planned bridge closures due to construction could impact the city.
Vancouver resident Tara Garofano says she made a dinner reservation on Valentine's Day — not for romance, but to take advantage of the final hours of the federal government's temporary Goods and Services Tax (GST) holiday.
Students at McMaster University in Hamilton are questioning the institution's commitment to the prevention of sexual violence after staffing changes at the office responsible for that work on campus.
Windsor-Essex could see its biggest snowfalls of the year in what Canada's weather agency is calling a "highly impactful" storm.
Alberta Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Services (FWES) is looking into reports of two young cougars that were spotted alone near Canmore this week.
All crew members of the MSC Baltic III have been rescued after their vessel ran aground close to the Lark Harbour shoreline off Newfoundland and Labrador's west coast.
Here's a look at some of the closures, and special events, happening in Thunder Bay on the Family Day weekend:
If you live in or around Toronto, you may want to keep that shovel nearby.