A spokesperson for Manitoba's Vaccine Implementation Task Force is emphasizing today that all vaccines being delivered in Manitoba are safe. Dr. Joss Reimer says vaccines are by far the safest and most studied medical intervention in our health care system. She notes there are systems in place to watch for any signals of negative outcomes associated with vaccines that do not exist for any other medical intervention.

"We want you to take whatever vaccine is available to you as quickly as possible," says Dr. Reimer. "This will help protect you, it will help protect those you love and others around you."

Dr. Reimer acknowledges that there have been questions about AstraZeneca, ever since it was linked to blood clots in some European countries.

"We are not seeing that here," she stresses. "The version of AstraZeneca being used in Europe is not the same as the vaccine being used in Canada. We don't have the same batch."

But, even if it was the same batch, Dr. Reimer says there is no indication that the vaccine has caused any of the adverse reactions being reported in Europe. In fact, she says in the United Kingdom, they have administered 11 million doses of AstraZeneca and have not seen any increased risk of blood clots.

"Health Canada is in contact with European regulators and they will take immediate action if there is any evidence that the vaccine increases the risk of blood clots," says Dr. Reimer.

On Tuesday of this week, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization expanded its recommendations for AstraZeneca to include people older than 64. However, this does not change the current eligibility criteria for clinics and pharmacies in Manitoba.

Meanwhile, Dr. Reimer says most of the variants of concern cases in Manitoba are the UK variant. She notes each of the vaccines being used in Manitoba works equally well against this variant. However, Dr. Reimer says it appears there is some decreased effectiveness against the South Africa variant, though it is still effective.

Currently, more than six per cent of Manitobans have received one dose of the vaccine. Recent research shows that a further 63 per cent say they are keen to get the vaccine and plan to get it as soon as they are eligible. Another 12 per cent say they are likely to get the vaccine but are not in a rush. Nine per cent say they have concerns about the vaccine and are undecided, while 10 per cent say they have no plans to get vaccinated.

Dr. Reimer says when it comes to herd immunity, it is believed that 70 per cent of a population needs to be vaccinated for this to happen.

"So when I see that over eighty per cent of Manitobans are eager to get the vaccine, I am really encouraged by that," she says.