Deadline coming for B.C.'s health-care workers to get vaccinated
The deadline for thousands of B.C. health-care workers to get their COVID-19 vaccinations is fast approaching and the province's health minister is still encouraging everyone eligible to get their shots.
The vaccine mandate requiring full vaccination for health-care workers comes into effect Tuesday. As of last week, about 96 per cent of workers were vaccinated, but about 5,500 still hadn't gotten even one shot.
If employees don't get a dose by Oct. 26, a public health order says they can't work.
Long-term care homes and assisted living facilities were the first subjected to the mandate because of the deadly consequences seen this year during the resurgence of COVID-19 outbreaks, blamed in part on the highly contagious Delta variant.
"When people are off sick from COVID-19 or have contacts of COVID-19, it affects staffing in hospitals … so this measure is necessary," Health Minister Adrian Dix said last week. "It's a tough measure, mandatory throughout our health-care system."
If unvaccinated workers get a first dose before Nov. 15, they can start work seven days after that shot, but must wear PPE and take other precautions until they get their second dose. Their second shot must be no more than 35 days after the first.
According to officials, as of last week, the region with the highest number of unvaccinated health-care workers is Interior Health (seven per cent), followed by Northern Health (six per cent) and Island Health (five per cent).
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Andrew Weichel
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
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.'
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.