Vaccine side effects 'small price to pay,' says Yukon's top doctor

Yukon's top doctor says people should be prepared for the potential for side effects from their second dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine — but Dr. Brendan Hanley said that's a sign the vaccine is working.

"Second doses are a pain in the… arm," the chief medical officer said.

"It's a small price to pay for such good protection."

Hanley was speaking alongside Premier Sandy Silver at their weekly COVID-19 update. 

Hanley said that as of Wednesday, 10,604 people in Yukon had received their first dose of vaccine, and 830 people had received their second dose. The territory has been prioritizing immunizations for long term care residents and staff, and those people were among the first in Yukon to receive their second doses, last week.

He said it's not unusual for people to experience more severe side effects after the second dose. Those symptoms may include headaches, fatigue, muscle aches or fever.

Earlier this week, the Yukon Employees' Union said many continuing care staff were missing work because of vaccine side effects. The union president said there was a big spike in the number of continuing care workers calling in sick last week, including 60 per cent of staff at the Thompson Centre in Whitehorse last Friday.

Silver said at the Thursday news conference that wasn't accurate — and he equated it to fear-mongering.

"It's simply not true that 60 per cent of continuing care workers were off the job last Friday, and I think that's irresponsible to spread misinformation and potentially stoking fears about the vaccine rollout," Silver said.

The premier said the number was closer to about 10 per cent.

"That number is not unusually high," he said.

Hanley said second-dose side effects, if experienced, typically pass after a day or so. He said the first dose can feel like a practice run, with the second dose being like "the big game."  

"Experiencing symptoms following a second dose of the vaccine is telling you that the vaccine is working," he said.

"This is just the affect of priming the immune system. Getting ready to protect you from COVID-19."

Missed Thursday's news conference? Watch it here:

As of Wednesday, the territory had no active cases. The last new case in Yukon was announced more than a month ago and the person has since recovered. 

There have been 70 confirmed cases in Yukon so far, and 69 of those people have recovered. One person has died.

Last week, Silver confirmed that public vaccination clinics planned for this week in Whitehorse had to be postponed because of vaccine supply issues. Yukon's third shipment, which arrived last weekend, was 2,700 doses smaller — or 37 per cent — than was originally expected. Another shipment later this month will see a similar reduction.

New dates have not yet been announced for the Whitehorse clinics, which would be open to the general public.

The government has said that anybody who has already received an initial dose of the vaccine will be assured of a second dose to ensure full protection.

Election speculation

Silver was also asked at Thursday's news conference about the timing of the next territorial election. It must be called by November.

The opposition Yukon Party said in a news release on Thursday morning that the government should say whether or not it has ruled out an early election call, this spring. 

"By not letting Yukoners know if the election will be in the spring, this has created even more uncertainty during a pandemic," the release says.

Silver dismissed the election talk on Thursday, saying his government is focused on delivering vaccines.

"I don't pay a lot of attention to opposition speculations on elections, but I do know they've been asking for one since August," Silver said.

Hanley was also asked to weigh in on election timing, but he demurred and said it's not his call.

"We will be prepared to be able to support a safe campaign where full participation can occur right up to election day," Hanley said.