Premier Jason Kenney. (Government of Alberta)

By David Opinko

Paramedics & EMS can now get COVID-19 vaccine in Alberta

Jan 11, 2021 | 3:55 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The Government of Alberta is expanding the eligibility for who can get vaccinated against COVID-19 right now.

Premier Jason Kenney announced Monday that paramedics and emergency medical personnel have been added to that list.

“We are ramping up our capacity to ensure no matter how many vaccines arrive in Alberta, there are people lined up ready to receive them and health-care workers ready to administer them. Alberta is already a leader in the number of doses delivered – and we will continue ramping-up our vaccination efforts for the benefit of all Albertans. Our main constraint is the available supply of vaccines.”

People who are eligible to be vaccinated include:

• Healthcare workers in ICU
• Healthcare workers in emergency departments, medical, surgical, and COVID-19 units or operating rooms
• Respiratory therapists
• Staff in long-term care and designated supportive living
• Home care workers
• All residents of long-term care and designated supportive living
• Paramedics and emergency medical responders

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“Paramedics are on the front line, first and foremost, as healthcare workers,” says Health Minister Tyler Shandro. “They are a vital part of our COVID response and I know that all paramedics are working day-in-and-day-out to keep Albertans safe.”

“On behalf of Alberta paramedics, I want to thank Minister Shandro and Premier Kenney for hearing our concerns and acting on them,” adds Dusty Myshrall, President of the Alberta Paramedics Association. “Adding paramedics to the early prioritization list recognizes the unique challenges that we face as front-line health-care workers serving in the midst of a pandemic.”

As of the end of Sunday, 46,791 doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered in the province. Recently, Kenney claims that as many as 3,800 shots are being used every day.

Going forward, Kenney hopes to increase the number of people who are able to get vaccines, partly through partnerships with the federal government.

By the end of January, he wants Alberta to have the capacity to vaccinate 50,000 people per week. By the end of March, that goal will be as high as 200,000 doses every week.

One of the province’s top priorities for vaccinations are residents and staff at long-term care centres. At the beginning of this week, people in 51 sites in the South Zone have been inoculated.

Later this month, the province expects to give more details on when seniors aged 75+ will be able to get vaccinated and eligibility for Phase 2.

Alberta Health Services also released its COVID-19 update for Monday, detailing the numbers compiled over the past 24 hours.

639 cases were confirmed across the province, bringing the total to 112,091. Of those, 13,917 cases are active while 96,867 people have recovered.

In the South Zone, 20 people tested positive including 10 in Lethbridge and five in Lethbridge County.

Active infections in the region and the city rose slightly to 307 and 109 respectively.

Since yesterday’s update, 22 Albertans died from COVID with 11 each from the Calgary and Edmonton Zones.

Provincially, 811 patients are currently hospitalized and 130 have been admitted to intensive care.

With another 9,838 tests conducted over the past 24 hours, there has now been a total of 2,941,072 tests completed on 1,694,801 different people.

Below is a breakdown of cases per health zone:

• Edmonton Zone – 47,543 cases, 5,441 active
  • 437 in hospital, 60 in ICU
  • 691 deaths (11 new)
• Calgary Zone – 42,888 cases, 4,958 active
  • 209 in hospital, 41 in ICU
  • 418 deaths (11 new)
• North Zone – 8,387 cases, 1,668 active
  • 64 in hospital, seven in ICU
  • 77 deaths
• Central Zone – 7,797 cases, 1,472 active
  • 81 in hospital, 16 in ICU
  • 56 deaths
• South Zone – 5,282 cases, 307 active
  • 20 in hospital, six in ICU
  • 64 deaths

Below is a breakdown of cases in the South Health Zone:

• Brooks – 1,359 cases (two new), 16 active, 14 deaths
• Lethbridge – 1,511 cases (10 new), 109 active, 10 deaths
  • West Lethbridge – 547 cases (one new), 32 active, two deaths
  • South Lethbridge – 499 cases (six new), 44 active, seven deaths
  • North Lethbridge – 467 cases (three new), 33 active, one death
• Medicine Hat – 494 cases, 36 active, nine deaths
• Lethbridge County – 465 cases (five new), 37 active, seven deaths
• M.D. of Taber – 318 cases, eight active, six deaths
• Cardston County – 320 cases (one new), 47 active, six deaths
• County of Warner – 149 cases, six active, two deaths
• County of Newell – 146 cases (one new), seven active, two deaths
• Cypress County – 144 cases, five active, zero deaths
• M.D. of Pincher Creek – 121 cases, 16 active, three deaths
• County of Forty Mile – 117 cases, four active, two deaths
• Fort Macleod – 72 cases, three active, three deaths
• Crowsnest Pass – 12 cases, one active, zero deaths