Doesn't it just make sense to ensure what vaccines we have are stuck in the arms of those most vulnerable?
The Saskatchewan Party government did the right thing Monday ... although there remains reason to question its capacity to do the right thing.
This time, however, it may go beyond the usual complaints from critics. At least in part, the question has become the government's own capacity to fight COVID-19 in the right way with the vaccine supply it has been getting.
That right thing for the Sask. Party government was extending vaccines to not only first responders like police officers, but also frontline workers that include pharmacists and fellow employees in their facilities that will include cashiers and shelf stockers.
Since many pharmacies in this province operate in places other than small, stand-alone drug stores — we're talking about virtually every Safeway, Superstore, Costco and Walmart in the province — this could means thousands and thousands of employees facing daily potential COVID-19 exposure being moved up the queue through greater availability of vaccines.
As recently as Saturday morning's rare sitting of the legislature, Health Minister Paul Merriman was still adamant his government was unwilling to deviate from its approach of mostly distributing vaccines at drive-thru clinics based on descending chronological age rather than targeting vulnerable communities or occupations.
Seemingly more important to Merriman and Premier Scott Moe is the ongoing narrative that we “lead the nation in delivering vaccines.”
The problem? This strategy just isn't working and very much seems unlikely to work.
The government's recently announced goal of having every Saskatchewan adult in the queue for a vaccine by mid-may — a tough task now because getting a consistent supply has been made more difficult by the 55-years- andup age restriction of Astrazeneca and the pause of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to blood clots.
Mathematically speaking, to have everyone actually vaccinated by then would require having near peak numbers (13,170 vaccinations on Saturday has been our peak so far) every day.
So, in the now highly likely event we won't get everyone vaccinated as quickly as we had hoped, doesn't it just make sense to ensure what vaccines we have are stuck in the arms of those most vulnerable?
Right now, we very much need to do something to stem the impact of the rapidly spreading variants.
Saskatchewan has been below 200 new cases for just six days in the past three weeks and has been above 300 new cases a day in three of the past five days.
The fear that doctors and epidemiologists identified prior to Easter is clearly coming to fruition. But if the government is going to be stubbornly unwilling to impose further restrictions on in-person dining in restaurants (outside Regina) or other measures, it only makes sense vaccines be aimed at those most at risk. Surely, this is what the numbers are telling us.
The CBC reported that from March 25 to April 8, 57 per cent of Regina outbreaks and 77 per cent of the Saskatoon outbreaks were in workplaces.
That includes manufacturers, food services and retail, so getting some additional store employees vaccinated is a great start.
This still won't please everyone. Specific health-care workers, teachers (although some of whom may not face a class for a while) and other retail workers exposed to the public will remain low on the priority list.
But any time a government moves off its untenable position — whether it willingly admits it's doing so or not — it is a good thing.
And moving police, firefighters, pharmacists and potentially thousands of retail workers up the queue is the right thing ... if we can.
Federal procurement and distribution of vaccines has become a problem. In fact, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's handling of vaccine supply that once included boasts of Canada having excess vaccine are becoming a bit of international embarrassment, given that this country is now registering more per capita deaths than the United States.
Unfortunately, circumstances are conspiring against the Sask. Party government that are making it more difficult to do the right thing.