Federal gov't says it did not mandate Sask. hold back vaccine doses, Merriman maintains it did
65 per cent of Saskatchewan's vaccine supply in freezers as of Friday
The federal government says it did not mandate Saskatchewan to "hold back" second doses of Pfizer/BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine as the province's Health Minister Paul Merriman claimed in a news conference this week, but Merriman maintained his stance Friday.
The Saskatchewan government faced scrutiny this week for the pace of its distribution of vaccines.
On Wednesday, Merriman defended the province's delivery plan, placing blame on the federal government and Pfizer.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine requires recipients to get a second dose 21 days after the first to be as effective as possible.
"The manufacturer and the Public Health Agency of Canada required us to hold back the second shots," Merriman said Wednesday.
He repeated the claim 10 times throughout the 45-minute press conference, using terms like "we had to hold back half" and "we could not give out every dose of the Pfizer that we received."
Both Health Canada and The Public Health Agency of Canada have denied mandating that the Saskatchewan government hold back doses.
"There is no requirement from the federal government to hold back the second dose in the vaccine series," a spokesperson for Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada said in an emailed statement.
During a news conference Friday, Merriman maintained his position.
"I was just simply reiterating what the federal government told us to do which is hold back the second dose," Merriman said.
While answering another question, he called the federal government's instructions a recommendation.
"I think the federal government had strongly recommended and advised us in doing this," Merriman said.
"At the time we wanted to make sure we had a secure amount of vaccines going forward. We didn't want to disobey the rules that they had recommended."
As of Friday morning, more than 65 per cent of Saskatchewan's supply of COVID-19 vaccines remain in freezers.
Feds say provinces responsible for rollouts
Merriman and the province's chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab stated Wednesday that the apparent requirement to hold back second doses was only during the pilot program.
"At that time, absolutely the requirement was you hold the second dose, because the second dose is actually given right this week," Shahab said Wednesday. "That is the plan for the first shipment, and the requirement to hold back the second dose."
Shahab said the requirement is no longer in place now that the province has started Phase 1 of its delivery plan and doses are coming in weekly.
The federal government says it never made such a requirement.
"Provincial and territorial governments will have to determine the best way to manage supply based on their own analysis and logistics," a spokesperson said. The federal government's role has been to procure and deliver vaccines and supplies to each jurisdiction.
Health Canada's website also publicly states provinces are "responsible for planning and running vaccination programs."
Pfizer said in an emailed statement it recommends "storing a portion of the doses received to ensure no delay in the second dose deployment."
The company added it's a conservative approach, but that dosing decisions ultimately lay with local health authorities.
"Recommendations on alternative dosing intervals reside with health authorities and may include adapting public health recommendations in reaction to evolving circumstances during a pandemic," a spokesperson said.
At Wednesday's news conference, Merriman was asked why the federal government changed course and no longer required the Saskatchewan government to hold back doses. He did not answer the question.
Managing the second dose
Not all provinces across the country held back second doses during the pilot program.
In early December, health officials in British Columbia said the province will distribute all its doses.
"We aren't holding back doses because we want to protect as many people as possible as quickly as possible," B.C.'s chief medical health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said on Dec. 9.
"You have good protection even with the first dose."
WATCH | Some provinces won't hold back COVID-19 vaccine doses for 2nd shot:
At that time, CBC reported Saskatchewan and New Brunswick had similar pilot plans to B.C., while Ontario health officials said they would reserve half its doses.
Pfizer's trial data shows its vaccines is 95 per cent effective in preventing COVID-19 after a second dose.
In recent weeks the federal government has done an analysis on the timing of the second dose, and if initial doses should be used to immunize as many people as possible.
Health Canada says the National Advisory Committee on Immunization "has carefully weighed the scientific evidence and ethical implications of widely distributing all vaccine doses right away to immunize more people, compared to holding back doses to complete a two-dose vaccine series."
It says the analysis will be published soon.
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With files from Christine Birak