British Columbia is bumping up its age-based vaccination plan by offering Oxford-AstraZeneca shots to Lower Mainland residents between the ages of 55 and 65. The move comes a day after provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced a pause on use of the same vaccine for anyone under 55 on the advice of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization amid concerns about rare blood clots. Dr. Henry says in a news release that officials know from the millions of doses used worldwide that the vaccine is highly effective and the benefits to those over age 55 far outweigh the very real risks

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Pfizer-BioNTech has confirmed it will move up delivery of five million vaccine doses to June from later in the summer. The earlier shipment period will boost the number of Pfizer doses received by the end of that month to 18 million doses. Procurement Minister Anita Anand says the accelerated schedule means Canada will receive about 44 million vaccine doses in total by the end of June, more than enough for every Canadian to receive at least one shot. By the end of this week, Canada will have received about 9.5 million vaccine doses from three manufacturers,

The federal government is expecting around 1.5 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine from the United States today. The vaccines are expected to arrive by truck and represent the first to come from south of the border. Provincial governments decide on their own how to use a vaccine, but Dr. Howard Njoo, Canada's deputy chief medical officer of health, says all provinces and territories have agreed to suspend the use of the vaccine for those under 55, pending the results of further study. The province's are acting on an advisory committee's concerns about a possible link between the

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry is banning indoor dining at bars and restaurants and indoor activity at fitness centres for three weeks starting at midnight. Dr. Henry describes the move as a "circuit breaker" amid concerns that more infectious variants are driving "exponential growth" of COVID-19 cases. She says the Whistler Blackcomb ski resort will also be closed until at least April 19th as cases spread in the community. Dr. Henry has also reintroduced restrictions on indoor religious services that she just announced would ease last week. Social activities need to be limited to

Federal immunization experts changed their recommendations for the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization says the vaccine should not be used on people under the age of 55. Health Canada is asking AstraZeneca to do a full analysis of the risks of its vaccine across all age groups and genders, following additional reports of patients in Europe developing blood clots. Dr. Supriya Sharma, the chief medical adviser at Health Canada, says there have been no blood clots reported in Canada to date and still believes the vaccine's benefits outweigh the r

Police are expected to release more details today in their investigation of a stabbing rampage that left a young woman dead and injured six others in and around a library on Saturday in North Vancouver, B.C.A 28-year-old man was charged Sunday with second-degree murder.The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team said Yannick Bandaogo is in police custody after undergoing surgery for self-inflicted wounds.Police have not named the woman who died, but said she was in her 20s.Six others were injured in the attack at the Lynn Valley Public Library.Police said their injuries vary in severity and al

British Columbia reported 908 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the third-highest daily total in the province since the start of the pandemic. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say in a joint statement there are 6,245 active cases and 294 individuals in hospital, of whom 81 are in intensive care. The officials are also reporting three new deaths, for a total of 1,449 fatalities linked to the virus in B.C. Some 140 of the new cases are variants of concern, for a total of 1,912, which are primarily the more transmissible strain first identified in the United

New federal modelling data shows severity indicators and daily cases of COVID-19 are back on the rise, with incidents highest among young adults.Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says daily cases have increased more than 30 per cent over the past two weeks, with an average of 29 deaths reported daily.Tam says that indicates we're in a ``very tight race'' between vaccines and variants of concern, which make up an increasingly high proportion of new cases in several provinces.The data released today by the Public Health Agency of Canada shows that while the number of cases have declin

Elders in British Columbia care homes will soon be able to socialize and receive visits from loved ones after being locked down by COVID-19 for more than a year. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the benefits of lifting some of the restrictions outweigh the risks to the elderly, who have had little interaction with family or friends since the pandemic began. Starting April 1st, residents in long-term care and assisted-living facilities will be able to have frequent and routine visits. The rule changes include allowing two visitors, plus a child, at one time -- and they're allowe