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The Alberta government says its provincewide influenza, COVID and respiratory syncytial virus vaccination campaign will begin next month.
In a news release issued Monday, the province said it’s maintaining the $100 fee it brought in last year for those seeking the COVID vaccine, though there’s a long list of reasons that could see the fee be waived for people, such as having health conditions that put them at risk for severe illness.
The government said it’s making it easier to get the vaccine this year as it’s waiving the fee for anyone over the age of 65, and once again supplying pharmacies with the COVID vaccine to administer it.
When the government brought in the fee, it had said it wanted to reduce vaccine wastage, especially since the province was now responsible for buying the vaccines instead of Ottawa.
The province said it did see substantially less wastage last year, with just about 20 per cent being tossed compared to the nearly 50 per cent gone to waste in 2024.
Uptake of the COVID vaccine dropped by just about 40 per cent after the province introduced the fee last year, compared to the year before.
“By expanding protections and offering immunization options close to home, we’re giving families more ways to protect the people they love, especially those most vulnerable,” Primary and Preventative Health Services Minister Justin Wright said in Monday’s news release.
The government says Albertans can start booking vaccination appointments on Oct. 5.