Syed Khan – 17 August 2021,
The Saskatchewan government is offering an extra dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to residents who may need it for international travel. Saskatchewan Health says residents who received a combination of Oxford-AstraZeneca, Pfizer, or Moderna can receive a third dose to match their last vaccine as long as the second dose was Pfizer or Moderna. The ministry says people with two doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca, also known as Covishield, will also be able to complete a schedule to support international travel requirements with two matching mRNA vaccines.
The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine was briefly in use in Saskatchewan, but officials saw widespread hesitancy around it after it was linked to extremely rare incidences of blood clots in some recipients. The province eventually ceased offering it as a first dose. Later, the federal government gave the green light to giving AstraZeneca recipients the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines as their second shot.
Canadians are considered fully immunized after receiving two doses of Pfizer, AstraZeneca or Moderna. Merriman said other countries, though, may not recognize vaccine “mixing,” though he is optimistic AstraZeneca will eventually get broad approval because of its use in countries like the United Kingdom.
Some countries are requiring proof of vaccination with specific vaccines – most commonly two doses of the same mRNA vaccine such as Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna with health officials asking travelers to check on approved vaccines for the country, venue or destination they plan to visit.
The province says 76 percent of Saskatchewan residents older than 12 have received their first shot and 66 percent of eligible residents are fully vaccinated. Saskatchewan reported 107 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday. Of those, 92 cases were either not vaccinated or partially vaccinated.
Similarly, in July, the Quebec government began offering a third dose of an mRNA vaccine to
residents fully immunized with the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
The University of Saskatchewan has joined a growing number of post-secondary institutions in the country requiring staff and students to be vaccinated for COVID-19 before returning to campus. Officials say in a news release that anyone planning to be on campus must provide proof of a first vaccination by Sept. 7 and a second dose by Oct. 18. The university says people who are unable or unwilling to get vaccinated will need to provide frequent negative COVID-19 test results and submit a daily symptom checklist in order to access campuses.
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