As of Saturday, March 20 at noon, all Indigenous people in BC age 55 and older will be able to register for a COVID-19 first-dose vaccination appointment as part of the province’s mass vaccination clinics.
The change is part of an acceleration of the provincial vaccination rollout announced March 18. Another part of the change will open registrations to Indigenous people age 18 and older starting April 6. A provincial online booking system will open that day.
The acceleration of the age-based vaccination program is possible due to an additional supply of approximately 500,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines sent to BC.
Call centres are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., every day, with reduced hours on statutory holidays.
Fraser Health Authority: 1-855-755-2455
Interior Health Authority: 1-877-740-7747
Northern Health Authority: 1-844-255-7555
Vancouver Coastal Health Authority: 1-877-587-5767
Vancouver Island Health Authority: 1-833-348-4787
If you’re unsure what Health Authority region you live in, visit this website:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/about-bc-s-health-care-system/partners/health-authorities/regional-health-authorities
In addition to the acceleration of the age-based mass vaccination clinics, the province announced an expansion of a parallel vaccination rollout for frontline workers and people with extreme clinically vulnerable conditions. Clinics for these prioritized individuals will use the new AstraZeneca vaccines.
Both Dr. Bonnie Henry, Provincial Health Officer, and Premier John Horgan, reminded people of the importance of continuing to follow public health guidelines for the time being even if they have been vaccinated.
“This is incredibly important,” said Dr. Henry. “We still have a lot of transmission. It takes time for immunization to protect me as an individual, but even when a group is immunized, not everyone is fully protected. The virus can still be transmitted, although the vaccines protect us from severe disease, hospitalization and death.”
“Vigilance needs to be the order of the day,” said Premier Horgan. “British Columbians have done a spectacular job - let’s not let each other down now.”
Read the provincial news release.
For more information about the COVID-19 vaccines, visit the
FNHA’s FAQs page.
