B.C. cuts minimum wait between COVID-19 vaccine doses to 28 days

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – B.C. is reducing the time between COVID-19 vaccine doses to 28 days. This change is due to the province’s rising daily COVID-19 numbers.

The wait between doses was already cut down to 28 days in the Central Okanagan, which has been leading the surge in cases in B.C. Elsewhere, the interval was 49 days. Monday’s announcement makes the 28-day minimum in effect for the entire province.

Over the weekend, B.C. recorded 1,079 new COVID-19 cases, more than half of which were in the Interior Health Authority. Last week, Henry said B.C. is “facing a wave of cases in the unvaccinated.”

There are also concerns about the highly infectious Delta variant, which is now found in 95 per cent of cases. Henry says the Delta variant can spread “very rapidly” in high-risk settings like long-term care, but adds they are seeing, “for the most part, milder illness in people who are fully vaccinated.”

“We know the vaccine is not 100% effective, but it dramatically reduces the risk and we’ve been looking at some of that data so it still shows that your risk of getting infected after immunization is much, much less than somebody who’s not vaccinated and your risk of having more severe illness is also much, much less. But it can happen,” she said.

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Although 28 days will be the new minimum interval between doses, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says if you do not live in an area where there is a spike in cases, it’s recommended you wait at least six to eight weeks, as it will likely give you better protection.

However, Henry says is the “ideal or optimal” interval between doses is still unconfirmed.

“If we look at it from a pure immunological point of view … it’s probably somewhere about six months,” she said.

“But we know that there’s a balancing between the virus transmission rate and waiting to get a second dose. So, there’s probably an advantage, if you can, to wait … six to 10 weeks. But we have to we have to balance that was the risk of you getting COVID, in the meantime.”

Notices of the change will start going out Monday night, with the new policy beginning Tuesday.

Doctor Bonnie Henry announces as of this evening, anyone who hasn't had a second #CovidVaccine shot are now be eligible 28 days after their first jab, moving up the time line. DBH still suggests those not in high-risk areas or communities can still wait longer for their 2nd jab.

— Paul James (小保) (@pjimmyradio) August 9, 2021

Henry maintains the “vast majority” of cases are in people who are unvaccinated or have only received one dose.

“It is a younger population who’ve not yet had the opportunity to have second doses or who have been putting off being immunized,” she said.

Health Minister Adrian Dix says 82 per cent of eligible British Columbians have received their first dose of vaccine and over 70.3 per cent are fully vaccinated.

“What we continue to see is the decline in the number of people who are partially vaccinated because we are obviously moving through our second dose vaccinations. As a result of today’s announcement that will happen even more quickly,” he said.

“We’re down to 833,298 people who are not yet vaccinated,” he added.

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Dix adds 90 per cent of British Columbians over the age of 65 have received a first dose, while 85 per cent have received their second.

A total of more than seven million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in B.C.

She says right now, there is no evidence that young, healthy people who get their two doses 28 days apart will need a booster shot.

“We are still waiting to get the information but it looks like there might be a case for providing a third dose to some people whose immune systems didn’t respond to dose one and two,” Henry said.

“There’s a study ongoing here in Canada and some internationally, looking at whether our offering a third dose actually gives that extra protection to people who have had transplants, who are on certain medications, who are on certain cancer therapies, etc. We’re hoping to get more information about that … in the next week or so.”

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Henry says she still expects colleges and universities to return to on-campus instruction this fall, reiterating her recommendation that students, researchers, and faculty members should get immunized.

Dix notes people aged 18 to 24, who make up the vast majority of people attending post-secondary education, have a 79.6 per cent vaccination rate for first doses. “That rate is actually higher than 25 to 29, 30 to 34, 35 to 39, and 40 to 44,” he said.

He says younger adults in Interior Health and Northern Health are where vaccination rates lag.

“Over-50 people in all of our health authorities are pretty equally immunized. Under-50, there’s a significantly higher rate of immunization amongst people in the two Metro Vancouver health authorities and on Vancouver Island than there is in Interior Health and Northern Health.”

On Wednesday, Henry told NEWS 1130 despite the rising daily COVID-19 numbers, “we absolutely are on track” to enter stage 4 of B.C.’s reopening plans in early September.

“I’m confident that we’re going to be in a good place here in B.C.,” she said, noting that could change if those who are vaccine hesitant remain that way.

With files from Claire Fenton and Lasia Kretzel