A health-care worker prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at a UHN COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Toronto on Thursday, January 7, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
WINNIPEG — Manitoba is expanding COVID-19 eligibility to include all adults in priority communities as well as first responders.
Manitoba Health Minister Heather Stefanson made the announcement Thursday evening during a telephone town hall surrounding the vaccination campaign.
“Manitoba is taking action to ensure our immunization campaign responds to the risks facing our communities,” said Stefanson.
“This comprehensive approach, built on the advice of our medical experts, is the next step in slowing the spread of COVID-19 and protecting people at risk. Thousands of people are immunized in Manitoba every day and this approach will help ensure doses reach those who need protection from the virus the most, including our first responders such as police and firefighters and those who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.”
In response to the third wave of the pandemic, which provincial doctors have acknowledged Manitoba is now experiencing, all adults living in communities most at risk will be eligible for the vaccine. That also includes specified frontline, public-facing workers in those communities, such as teachers.
The province will reveal which communities will be eligible on Wednesday, April 21, as well as which professions will be prioritized. Further details on when police and firefighters can book their appointments will also be provided next week.
Manitoba reported 153 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, including the first case of the more contagious P1 variant, first identified in Brazil.
