Some B.C. residents booking fall boosters without invitations
A number of eager British Columbians have managed to schedule a fall booster of COVID-19 vaccine without an invitation – though officials stress that protecting the most vulnerable remains their priority.
Over the last two days, several social media users have reported successfully booking an appointment by calling the province's vaccine hotline, with some managing to receive their fourth dose just hours later.
"You don't need an invite for the bivalent vaccine," one Reddit user wrote on Sunday. "Sharing because public health messaging is making this way harder than it really is."
Others followed suit and had similar results, including Milton Gonzalez, who told CTV News he was able to book booster appointments for himself, his wife and their children on Monday.
"I saw the post on Reddit so I called into the number," Gonzalez said. "That was it."
Their appointments were all scheduled within 48 hours of his call, he added.
While he is not personally considered high-risk of complications from COVID-19, Gonzalez said he's been anxious to get additional protection.
"My last dose was in January, so it's been almost 10 months," said Gonzalez, who is in his 40s. "And we've seen during the last two or three weeks lots of people getting sick because of COVID – some people in my work, some of my friends."
Other Reddit users reported that they were able to get a booster just by walking into a neighbourhood pharmacy without an appointment – though a number of others reported being turned down both on the hotline and in person.
Asked whether the government discourages people from trying their luck on the hotline, B.C.'s Ministry of Health noted that invitations are going out in a determined order based on a variety of risk factors.
"As we have done during other stages of the pandemic, we must protect our most vulnerable, our health-care system, our communities and the economy," the ministry wrote in an email.
Officials said they are not opposed to people proactively calling for an appointment if they have waited at least six months since their previous dose, are at least 18 years old, and "feel a booster dose is necessary" for a particular reason – for instance, if someone is caring for a family member who is high-risk.
Invites are currently being extended to those age 43 or older in the general population, Indigenous people of all ages, those considered extremely clinically vulnerable, and health-care workers.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization has recommended a six-month interval between third and fourth doses. Anyone who has recently caught COVID-19 is also advised to hold off on getting a booster until three months after their infection, for the strongest immune response.
As of Monday morning, approximately 1.75 million invitations had been sent, according to the province.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Explosion at train station leads to discovery of stolen car on Montreal's South Shore: police
Police are investigating after a BMW exploded in the St-Lambert Exo train station parking lot on Montreal's South Shore.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left party in next month's election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.