Third doses of covid-19 vaccination are being offered to specific high-risk groups to help provide sufficient protection based on a suboptimal or waning immune response to vaccines and increased risk of COVID-19 infection. Based on the recommendation of the Chief Medical Officer of Health and in alignment with NACI’s recommendation, the province will begin offering third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to additional vulnerable populations. This includes:

​

• Those undergoing active treatment for solid tumors;

• Those who are in receipt of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T-cell;

• Those with moderate or severe primary immunodeficiency (e.g., DiGeorge syndrome, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome);

• Stage 3 or advanced untreated HIV infection and those with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS); and

• Those undergoing active treatment with the following categories of immunosuppressive therapies: anti-B cell therapies (monoclonal antibodies targeting CD19, CD20 and CD22), high-dose systemic corticosteroids, alkylating agents, antimetabolites, or tumor-necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors and other biologic agents that are significantly immunosuppressive.

 

This is now in addition to the original criteria:

• Transplant recipients (including solid organ transplant and hematopoietic stem cell transplants);

• Patients with hematological cancers (examples include lymphoma, myeloma, leukemia) on active treatment (chemotherapy, targeted therapies, immunotherapy);

• Recipients of an anti-CD20 agent (e.g. rituximab, ocrelizumab, ofatumumab); and

• Residents of high-risk congregate settings including long-term care homes, higher-risk licensed retirement homes and First Nations elder care lodges.

​

PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL OR PHONE IF YOU DO NOT MEET THE CRITERIA. MINISTRY OF HEALTH GUIDELINES ARE STRICT AND NO EXCEPTIONS ARE POSSIBLE. IT IS YOUR CURRENT HEALTH CONDITION WHICH DETERMINES ELIGIBILITY. WE ANTICIPATE THAT THE CRITERIA WILL CHANGE AGAIN IN THE FUTURE BUT WE DO NOT KNOW WHEN OR HOW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE.