Immunocompromised Albertans eligible for 4th COVID-19 vaccine dose
More than 80,000 immunocompromised Albertans can soon receive a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose.
Albertans 18 years and older with an immunocompromising condition can receive another booster shot five months after their third dose.
Appointments start on Thursday.
"Providing a fourth dose to these individuals is equivalent to a third dose for others," said Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health.
"This will not only help prevent some breakthrough infections that we've been seeing, but also decrease the chance that people with immune-compromising conditions could have severe outcomes from COVID-19."
Fourth doses have not been approved for minors who have immunocompromising conditions, the province said, but they are eligible for third doses.
TUESDAY DATA
There are 1,089 Albertans with COVID-19 in hospital as of Tuesday, including 104 in intensive care.
Nine more Albertans have died due to the disease, increasing the province's death toll to 3,412. The deaths were in individuals ranging in age from in their 60s to more than 80 years years old.
"The bottom line is that our acute care system remains under serious pressure and COVID-19 continues to pose a risk of severe outcomes to many Albertans," Hinshaw said.
"This rise will continue to put pressure on our health system and the health-care workers who take care of us."
The province also reported 3,279 new COVID-19 cases after 8,995 PCR tests, increasing known active infections to more than 70,000.
Alberta Health will next update its data on Wednesday.
OTHER COVID-19 RELATED NEWS
Alberta expects to receive its first limited supply of Paxlovid by the end of the week. Pfizer's COVID-19 antiviral treatment was the first oral at-home prescription medication to be cleared for use in Canada on Monday.
Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now isolating with self-described mild symptoms.
Some Edmonton-area schools have moved classes online because of COVID-19 staffing pressures.
A petition asking the University of Lethbridge to make a formal decision about whether classes will be offered online or in person has been signed more than 1,300 times.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games Tuesday following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.