What charging for COVID-19 vaccines means for Albertans going forward
When the province announced that most Albertans will have to pay for COVID-19 vaccines themselves going forward, the phones at Mohamed Elfishawi's two Edmonton pharmacies started ringing.
"People are scared," Elfishawi said during an interview at his south Edmonton location, describing the calls he's had from clients – especially seniors.
Earlier this month, the province announced it would only cover vaccines for particular high-risk groups: people living in care homes and group settings, those receiving home care, people on social programs such as AISH, and immunocompromised individuals.
Everyone else will have to pay an estimated $110 if they want the vaccine.
Accessing the shot will also be more limited: in the near future, pharmacists like Elfishawi will no longer be allowed to administer them, they will only be available at health clinics.
Alberta's new path makes it an outlier in Canada, prompting questions about why the province has diverged from national recommendations on vaccines, what the timeline is for rolling out the new distribution system and whether or not the vaccine can be added to group health benefit plans.
Will group benefits offer coverage?
The United Nurses of Alberta (UNA) is already in talks with employers, seeking to get COVID immunization coverage added to group health benefits.
"But even if they do, what that means is that it will fall onto the insurance companies, which will mean increased premiums both for employees and employers," said Heather Smith, UNA's president.
UNA is also looking into benefits covering the cost for its staff. If it can't get sorted out in time for the fall rollout of vaccines, Smith said they plan to offer reimbursement for employees who pay to get immunized.
Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers' Association, said they are exploring options through insurance, but he has also written to ministers asking them to reverse the decision.
"We have policy around this that teachers should get vaccinations provided to them because they're working in congregated settings with students," Schilling said. "We know we have overcrowded classrooms."
Alberta Union of Public Employees vice-president Bonnie Gostola calls the plan to charge for the shots a "slap in the face" to members working in roles like hospital porters, housekeeping, and other service roles.
"Workers that barely make above minimum wage — $110 is one day pay for those members – it's excessive, especially when they are also responsible for looking after other people," she said.
Gostola said AUPE has been telling workers this is an occupational health and safety issue, and that it believes the employer needs to take on the responsibility of covering the cost of vaccines.
Some employers are suggesting other avenues for staff. The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority said in a statement that its workers will be able to use their employee health care spending account to pay for the shot.
A complex change
For people who do have health benefits, getting COVID vaccines added to group benefit coverage won't be simple. Alberta Blue Cross – a non-profit insurance provider that runs government coverage programs as well as private plans – has been getting inquiries from both employers and plan members about covering the vaccines.
"We are waiting for more information on the COVID vaccines — including the cost and specific details on the way Albertans will access and be charged for the COVID vaccine — before we can make a decision regarding private plan coverage," said Blue Cross spokesperson Sharmin Nault Hislop in a statement.
"The change is complex and there are a lot of factors at play."
Hislop explained that it's not a simple internal decision as private plans have many different designs, some including vaccine coverage and some that don't.
The organization also has an internal drug review process that needs to be done to determine if and how it can add COVID-19 vaccines to its roster of covered medications.
U.S. comparison
There is variability in the types of health care and medications publicly covered province-to-province. For example, shingles vaccines are free for older adults in some jurisdictions but not others.
But changing access to COVID-19 shots, which were freely available across the country for so long, creates a compelling case study, said Jamie Daw, an assistant professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.
"I think it's not something that anyone expected access would be taken away," Daw said.
"I think that's sort of part of this broader conversation about sort of privatization in the Canadian health-care system more generally, and how we should grapple with it and what policies and regulations might be needed in cases like this."
Daw said that in the United States, about 90 per cent of Americans can still get COVID vaccines for free — covered by private insurance, and Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Unlike Canada where following the isn't required, the U.S. has federal regulations requiring that certain vaccines be fully covered by public and private coverage.
Diverging from NACI's recommendations
The province said in the 2023-2024 respiratory virus season, 135 million worth of doses went to waste. For the upcoming season, Alberta has ordered 500,000 doses – some of which will be given for free to the identified high-risk groups, and the rest available for purchase to help Alberta recoup the coast.
Most Albertans will soon pay about $110 for a COVID shot
1 day ago
Duration 2:43
With Alberta soon to end free COVID-19 vaccines for most residents, there's growing concern about cost, coverage and access — especially for vulnerable seniors. When provincial funding ends, most Albertans will have to pay an estimated $110 per dose.
A statement from Minister of Primary and Preventive Health Services Adriana LaGrange's office this week said the decision still offers protection to vulnerable Albertans, and takes low uptake of the vaccine by the general population into account.
And while Lagrange's office said the province was informed by NACI's recommendations on vaccines, it decided not to offer free vaccines to a number of high risk, priority groups that NACI identifies because of "Alberta's specific needs," such as uptake trends.
Those high-risk groups not being offered free vaccines include all people over 65, pregnant people, Indigenous people, members of racialized and other equity-denied communities, and health-care workers and other care providers in community settings.
The exclusion of people over 65 is particularly concerning to Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of Alberta. She said it's a major deviation from NACI's recommendations, which do take cost to provinces into consideration.
"It doesn't really endorse using the vaccine very strongly from a public health perspective if they're not covering it," Saxinger said.
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The rise in tick-borne disease doesn't mean you should stay inside, experts agree. But you can protect yourself. Here's what to know about the illnesses and how to safely enjoy the summer weather. HOW COMMON IS LYME DISEASE? Lyme disease has been on the rise in Canada and the United States for several years. When provincial public health units started monitoring it in 2009, they reported 144 cases across the country. The preliminary case count for 2024 is 5,239, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. The real number is likely higher because many people may have had very general symptoms and never got a diagnosis, Coatsworth said. 'There's estimates that if things keep going the way they are and climate change keeps going the way things go, that in 25 years we'd have about half a million cases of Lyme disease here in Canada,' she said. WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF LYME DISEASE? Lyme disease can feel like many other illnesses and may bring on fever, chills, fatigue, headache, swollen lymph nodes and/or muscle and joint aches. One telltale sign of Lyme disease is a rash that looks like a bull's eye, a target or that is circular or oval-shaped. But Coatsworth cautions that about 30 per cent of people who are infected never get a rash, so a Lyme disease diagnosis shouldn't be ruled out if people have other symptoms. WHAT ARE SOME OTHER TICK-BORNE DISEASES? In the last couple of years, some provinces have started monitoring three other diseases spread by blacklegged ticks: anaplasmosis, babesiosis and Powassan virus. Of those, anaplasmosis — although still rare — seems to be growing the fastest, said Coatsworth: 'It's kind of the new kid on the block.' When public health officials first started monitoring it around 2012, there were about 10 to 50 cases per year in Canada. There were more than 700 cases of anaplasmosis reported last year, Coatsworth said. 'It's really picking up speed within the population.' The symptoms of anaplasmosis can be similar to Lyme disease, without a rash. They can also include cough, diarrhea, abdominal pain and vomiting, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. Babesiosis can also cause similar symptoms to Lyme disease without a rash, but it often causes anemia as well, Coatsworth said. Powassan virus can cause fever, chills, headache, vomiting and general weakness but it often progresses to serious neurological symptoms, such as encephalitis (brain swelling) and meningitis. CAN THESE DISEASES BE TREATED? Lyme disease and anaplasmosis are both caused by bacteria and can be treated with antibiotics, usually starting with doxycycline, said Coatsworth. Babesiosis is caused by a parasite and is similar to malaria, she said. It can be treated with anti-parasitic medications. There is no treatment for Powassan virus. Patients are treated with supportive care, which can include intravenous fluids, medications to reduce brain swelling and respiratory assistance. WHAT KIND OF TICKS CARRY THESE DISEASES? Two types of blacklegged ticks carry these diseases: Ixodes scapularis, also called a deer tick, is found in several parts of Canada, especially Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia. In parts of British Columbia, the dominant tick is Ixodes pacificus, also known as the western blacklegged tick. Ticks feed on the blood of deer, mice, rabbits and other mammals, as well as birds and reptiles. Birds can carry the ticks long distances, so they can be transported to different parts of Canada. The ticks get infected if the host animal is infected, and they in turn transmit the disease to humans when they bite them and latch on. WHAT DO THE TICKS LOOK LIKE? 'A lot of people are very surprised when I show them a blacklegged tick. They can't believe how small they are,' said Dr. Curtis Russell, a vector-borne disease specialist at Public Health Ontario. An adult tick that isn't full of blood is about the size of a sesame seed. A younger tick is about the size of a poppyseed. WHERE ARE TICKS FOUND? Ticks are found in wooded and grassy areas, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. That includes forests, parks and hiking trails, but ticks can also live in more populated areas, Coatsworth said. '(It's) a lot about the animals that exist in those environments. So a lot of those are peri-urban spaces ... kind of those in-between spaces that now have become just maybe your local neighbourhood park where there's a lot more squirrels. Small rodents and white-tailed deer, especially, have really contributed to sustaining the populations of ticks.' HOW DO I PREVENT TICK BITES? Preventing tick bites is similar to repelling mosquitoes, said Dr. Mayank Singal, a public health physician with the BC Centre for Disease Control. Wearing long sleeves, long pants and using bug spray are all important measures. Choosing light-coloured clothing is best because it's easier to spot a tick when it lands. Singal also encourages 'trying to not come in contact with foliage and bushes, because that's typically how they will latch on.' Russell said that means when hiking, stay in the middle of the trail. After outdoor activities, do a full-body tick check, including parts of the body that weren't exposed. Russell suggested taking a bath or a shower. 'You can check all your areas where the ticks might have been and if they haven't bit you yet ... they can maybe wash off,' Russell said. 'They usually crawl around ... before they bite and they usually tend to bite your hairline, your armpits, the back of your legs, your groin area.' Russell also recommends washing your clothes and putting them in the dryer, where the high heat will kill ticks. IF I FIND A TICK, SHOULD I REMOVE IT? Yes. Do it with tweezers as soon as possible, experts agree. A tick will embed its mouth in the skin as with the legs sticking out and it's important to remove the whole tick. 'You want to grab it as close to the skin edge as possible, squeeze the tweezers ... and grab the tick and then pull it straight up,' said Singal. 'We don't want to twist, we don't want to go left and right. Just pull it straight up so that we get all of it out as much as possible.' It generally takes about 24 hours for the tick to transmit Lyme disease, anaplasmosis or babesiosis while it's latched on. Powassan virus can be transmitted as quickly as 15 minutes after attachment, but very few ticks currently carry the virus, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. THEN WHAT? People can take a photo of the tick and submit it to along with information about where you were when you think it bit you. The service, run by several universities and public health agencies, will tell you what kind of tick it is and how much tick-borne disease risk there is in the area. If you had a tick on you and begin to develop any symptoms, see your health-care provider and let them know you were possibly exposed to tick-borne illness, Russell said. -- This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 28, 2025. Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content. Nicole Ireland, The Canadian Press
