Pregnant people prioritized for vaccine in B.C. as doctors reassure shots are safe

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — An expert says a lot of “behind the scenes work” had to take place before B.C. finally was able to prioritize people who are pregnant for the COVID-19 vaccine.

As of Tuesday, if you are someone who’s pregnant and over the age of 16, you will be eligible to receive a vaccine dose.

At Fraser Health’s virtual public board meeting, Dr. Elizabeth Brodkin explained that the reason this group of people only now has become eligible, is because officials needed to study the risk posed to pregnant people. This included the risk of “getting more severe COVID disease, ending up in hospital, and even ending up in intensive care.”

“And it was determined that the risk of somebody who is in their 20s and pregnant of having a poor outcome from COVID is about the same as the risk of somebody who is in their 50s and not pregnant, of having a bad outcome. So when the age-based strategy got down into the mid-50s, and those people shared a similar level of risk to those 20-year-old pregnant [people], that was when the door was opened” to all pregnant people to also be eligible, Brodkin said.

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Dr. Yvette Lu is a family doctor based in the Fraser Health region and says research suggests pregnant individuals are at a higher risk for having a bad reaction to COVID-19. So, she is encouraging those expecting to take advantage of the vaccine.

“If you’re pregnant, it’s very important to get the COVID-19 vaccine because you’re actually at higher risk of a serious COVID-19 infection,” she says.

“The COVID vaccine is safe and effective,” she adds. “And it’s the best way to protect yourself and your growing infant while you’re pregnant. The vaccines have been studied now. New studies have come out, and it’s shown that they’re safe and effective.”

Lu explains most pregnant people who are infected with the coronavirus will have mild to moderate symptoms. However, both Canadian and International Studies have shown that one in 10 pregnant people will require hospitalization from COVID. And between 2 to 4 per cent of pregnant people will require treatment in an intensive care unit.

Lu adds people carrying a child are also at an increased risk of requiring intubation.

“So the people who are most at risk of COVID-19 infections when pregnant seem to be people who have additional risk factors like people over the age of 35, people with pre-existing conditions like asthma, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, people who smoke and people who are very overweight/. Those people have an additional increased risk for serious COVID-19 infection if they’re pregnant. And there’s also an increased risk of preterm birth, which means the baby being born too early if you have a COVID-19 infection while pregnant,” Lu explains. “So this increased risk is why the vaccine is being so strongly recommended in pregnant [people].”

Originally, the recommendation for those expecting a child was to proceed cautiously when it came to getting vaccinated, but Lu says that was because the original clinical trials didn’t include pregnant and breastfeeding people.

“However, now, after people have been using the vaccine for so many months, many … in Canada and around the world have received COVID vaccine safely and have been participating in studies. And the studies are now showing that the vaccine is safe and effective. And that even [people who were pregnant] have been able to pass the vaccine-generated antibodies to their infants when they get immunized in pregnancy and in breastfeeding. So you’re not only protecting yourself, you’re also protecting your baby.”

Since there is more data surrounding them, and because there’s no risk of vaccine-induced blood clots, Lu recommends this group receive the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

“I really want to emphasize to pregnant people that the rate of miscarriage and birth defects is not elevated. And I know that’s something that a lot of pregnant people worry about. And understandably so,” she says.

However, Lu adds it’s safer to get the vaccine rather than avoid it.