Saskatchewan will run out of COVID-19 vaccine in the next few days, Moe says
About 84% of the province’s 24,400 doses have been administered
Saskatchewan will run out of COVID-19 vaccine "over the course of the next few days," says Premier Scott Moe.
During a press conference on Tuesday, the premier said the province has gone through 15,000 doses in the past week.
About 84 per cent of the province's 24,400 doses have been administered, and new supplies coming in are not enough to replenish what has already been used.
At this time, the shortage should not have an impact on those requiring a second dose said Dr. Saqib Shahab, the province's chief medical health officer, as it's believed second doses can be administered up to 42 days after the first and still be effective.
On Tuesday, it was reported that Canada won't be getting any of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine next week because of a production slowdown, resulting in fewer doses for provinces.
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According to the Saskatchewan government, 2,925 doses will arrive next week, but it's not what officials expected.
"Over the next four weeks we are now expecting about 17,500 doses from Pfizer, and that is rather than the 37,000 we were expecting to receive," Moe said.
"We did almost that many shots this past week alone."
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Moe is calling on the federal government to provide "reliable information" on when vaccines are coming in.
"We are short of vaccines at every location in Saskatchewan we are providing them," Moe said, adding that the government will revise its vaccine rollout in the weeks ahead.
"We need the federal government to pick up the pace of their vaccine delivery in the weeks ahead, and pick up their negotiations and discussions with Pfizer in particular."
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Moe also echoed a commentmade by Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Tuesday, in which Ford expressed frustration with Pfizer executives.
"If I was in [Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's] shoes ... I'd be on that phone call every single day. I'd be up that guy's yin-yang so far with a firecracker he wouldn't know what hit him," the Ontario premier said of Pfizer's executives.
"I would just say that … if the prime minister is able to do that, there would be a lineup of premiers behind that would bring a lighter to that party," Moe said.