Vaccine plan has challenges

Mar 1, 2021 | 3:27 PM

NORTHERN BC – Over the course of the next week, those who work in places like independent living, supportive seniors house and so one will be contacted to be vaccinated.

“Very soon, in a week, March 8th, other seniors will be able to call in. So the exact date that someone can call in will depend on their age,” explains Eryn Collins with Northern Health. The dates to call in will be staggered and based on the year of your birth.

But the plan is being rolled out with a lot of major questions, according to Opposition Leader Shirley Bond.

“I have all kinds of concerns. This program should have been laid out long before now. I also understand and accept the variability of the arrival of vaccines. We understand, we are going to get the vaccine. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have a thorough, comprehensive, laid-out plan ready so when that vaccine arrives, that process can begin in a smooth and efficient way.”

There are 9,000 people aged 80 and older in Northern Health and Bond acknowledges it’s a “massive undertaking” moreso with a health authority of such gigantic proportions and many smaller, sparsely located communities. There is another challenge, though.

“I mean, one of the things we learned from the Fraser Health information that was shared, actually leaked to a reporter, was the fact that 500 vaccinators needed to be put in place and the government expected to find volunteers to do that. That, in and of itself, is a massive undertaking and one would have hoped would have started months ago, not just days ago.”