Sask. swaps in Pfizer-BioNTech at drive-thrus to vaccinate those between 52 and 54

Saskatchewan is switching up its COVID-19 vaccine drive-thru clinic strategy yet again, in order to solidify its status as the province rolling out vaccines at the fastest rate per capita.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority announced Tuesday it will begin offering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at most current and all future COVID-19 immunization drive-thrus, beginning at the Saskatoon drive-thru on Wednesday and at other locations on Thursday.

Click here for a more detailed list of clinic locations and the changes. 

A long line of cars could be seen at the Prairieland Park drive-thru clinic in Saskatoon on Wednesday morning.

Up to now, drive-thrus have been offering the AstraZeneca vaccine, but the age limit for that vaccine — people 55 and older — has hemmed in the province's ability to vaccinate as many people as it would like to.

Effective Wednesday, drive-thrus will be open to people aged 52 to 54 only, with the exception of Regina, which will be open to those aged 48 to 54.

"This change will help to remove any vaccine-related age-barriers that prevent immunization of younger residents," the SHA said in a release.

"The type of vaccine available at a clinic can change depending on a number of factors, but all vaccines are safe, effective and approved for use in Canada. All vaccines available in Canada are extremely effective at preventing serious illness and hospitalization."

As of Wednesday, Saskatchewan had administered 25,365 doses per 100,000 people, according to the COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker.

The next closest province was Quebec, with 24,205 doses per 100,000 people. 

Health Canada deems AstraZeneca safe for all adults

Only half a day after Saskatchewan announced its change in plan, Health Canada officials said Wednesday they still believe the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe and that the shot can be safely deployed in all adults regardless of age.

However, due to concerns over blood clots in a small proportion of AstraZeneca recipients, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) recently recommended that provinces restrict access to that vaccine to adults over the age of 55 — for now. Saskatchewan did so. 

It remains unclear if Health Canada's updated guidance on Wednesday will have any effect on Saskatchewan's drive-thru plan. CBC News reached out to the SHA and the Ministry of Health for comment. 

Dr. Supriya Sharma, Health Canada's chief medical adviser, said there is a "very low risk" that some patients could develop blood clotting with low platelets following vaccination.

Sharma said with COVID-19 raging — and with the risk of hospitalization and death still much greater than the risk of developing clots following an AstraZeneca shot — the benefits of this vaccine clearly outweigh any risks.

Health Canada said NACI is reviewing more real-world data now and could update its guidelines.