Air Canada walks back new seat selection policy change after backlash
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) is now recommending that people who received a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine receive a second dose of an mRNA vaccine, such as Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna.
NACI’s latest advice takes into consideration the most recent evidence on the rare instances of blood clots associated with the AstraZeneca shot and the increase of mRNA vaccine supply arriving on Canadian soil.
It also says it reviewed emerging evidence “suggesting better immune responses” when an individual receives a first dose of AstraZeneca and a second dose of an mRNA vaccine.
“There are just increasing numbers of studies, mostly from Germany, that we’ve accumulated in between that last set of recommendations and today’s recommendations and all of them essentially point towards the fact that it is safe to provide a mixed-dose schedule,” Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam told reporters on Thursday.
“We will continue to monitor this in a real life basis as vaccines are rolling out.”
For those who receive a first jab of an mRNA vaccine, it’s advised they seek the same product or use another mRNA vaccine.
The advisory panel made the specification, however, that those who have already received two doses of AstraZeneca “can rest assured that the vaccine provides good protection against infection and very good protection against severe disease and hospitalization.”
As of June 5, 2.1 million Canadians have received one shot of AstraZeneca and 15,186 people have received two doses. Of the 7,408 reports of adverse side effects following immunization since June 11 from any authorized vaccine, 1,565 are considered “serious,” such as causing a severe allergenic reaction or vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia.
The head of Canada’s vaccine rollout campaign, Brig.-Gen. Krista Brodie, said there are still approximately 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca unused in Canada and it will be up to the provinces and territories to determine how best to use them.
“We continue to expect that the use of those vaccines will continue to evolve over the coming days,” Brodie said.
Dr. Tam acknowledged the frustration of Canadians who may feel misled by the body, but reiterated the challenges of working through a fluid health crisis that’s consistently changing.
“I totally recognize that this is difficult for many, but what I would say is that those who have received two doses of AstraZenca, COVISHIELD vaccine, you’ve been provided with good protection against infection,” she said.
According to records compiled by Our World in Data, 177 countries and territories have used AstraZeneca, compared with 104 for Pfizer and 54 for Moderna.
Montreal-based epidemiologist Dr. Christopher Labos told CTV News Channel following the announcement there have “clearly been some missteps” in communication with regards to the use of AstraZeneca.
“The point is to give everybody two doses and when you can acknowledge that the second dose need not necessarily be the same as the first, that gives you a lot more flexibility and makes you a lot more immune to the variability of vaccine supply, so if they phrased it that way, I think it would have been a lot more reassuring to people,” he said.
The government is still aiming to receive 55 million COVID-19 vaccine doses by the end of July and commits to being able to provide full vaccination to every Canadian that seeks it by the end of September.
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
An ongoing municipal strike, court battles and revolt by half of council has prompted the province to oust the mayor and council in Black River-Matheson.
Three officers on a U.S. Marshals Task Force serving a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and five other officers were wounded in a shootout Monday at a North Carolina home, police said.
A Calgary elementary school principal has been charged with possession of child pornography, authorities announced Monday.
The Vancouver Island Health Authority is downplaying what staff describe as a cockroach infestation in a medical unit of Saanich Peninsula Hospital.
Toronto police say 12 people are facing a combined 102 charges in connection with an investigation into a major credit fraud scheme.
One of the winners of a historic US$1.3 billion Powerball jackpot last month is an immigrant from Laos who has had cancer for eight years and had his latest chemotherapy treatment last week.
Britney Spears and her father Jamie Spears will avoid what could have been a long, ugly and revealing trial with a settlement of the lingering issues in the court conservatorship that controlled her life and financial decisions for nearly 14 years.
The clock is ticking ahead of the deadline to file a 2023 income tax return. A personal finance expert explains why you should get them done -- even if you owe more than you can pay.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.