By Hannah Scott, Richmond Sentinel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Yesterday, Health Minister Adrian Dix said BC will begin to receive more doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in April.

After the 800,000 doses expected by the end of March, in the second quarter of the year BC expects 2.64 million doses, an average of 203,077 each week. From July to September, six million more doses are expected to arrive, an average of 461,538 each week.

The COVID 19 vaccines

These numbers include only Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and do not include the federal government’s announcement that it has secured an additional 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine. Other vaccine providers like AstraZeneca and Janssen are also not included in the numbers provided.

“This is a massive effort and today’s announcement is part of the extraordinary effort made across the BC healthcare system to prepare for our immunization,” said Dix.

BC also expects further delivery of the Pfizer vaccine today and tomorrow, and more Moderna vaccines are expected to arrive on Friday.

Dr Penny Ballem executive lead

Dr. Penny Ballem, a professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia and the current Vancouver Coastal Health board chair, will act as the executive lead on the province’s immunization program.

Top photo credit: A vaccination in Nanaimo – courtesy Island Health