Alberta pharmacies face COVID-19 vaccine shortages as fall rollout begins

CALGARY · Calgary pharmacist Randy Howden was set to administer COVID-19 vaccines to about 250 seniors on Friday, but his allocation of doses was cancelled just days before. Howden, who owns several Medicine Shoppe pharmacies, said he is unsure when he will receive the supply needed to give those patients their shots. "The problem that we're seeing is meeting the demand. We're not getting enough vaccine shipments to us to meet the demand that is there," he said. The province allowed pharmacists to administer COVID shots this fall, with the vaccine costing $100 unless the patient is eligible for a free dose, such as those 65 and older, health-care workers or people with underlying medical conditions.

Initial allocations were based on estimates of past demand, Howden said. He noted his pharmacies typically see the highest demand in the first two to four weeks after vaccines become available. Pharmacists now place weekly orders on staggered days to manage distribution, according to David Brewerton, pharmacy manager at Luke’s Drug Mart in Calgary’s Bridgeland neighbourhood. Brewerton said his pharmacy received only one third of its order last week and about a tenth of its order this week.

Normally, his pharmacy would accept walk-in patients for vaccines, but this season they are limited to appointments only, and even those have not all been fulfilled. "We don't know until we actually get the vaccine how much we're getting," Brewerton said. "I don't really know the ins and outs of what they order and how they plan it, but it's certainly in that sense failed this year." Both pharmacists said they have had no issues obtaining sufficient flu shots. The Alberta government, however, stated there is no shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in the province. In a statement, the Ministry of Primary and Preventative Health Services said more than 450,000 doses have been ordered this season already. The ministry said it is working to get vaccines where they are most needed and will "redistribute additional supply within the province to the communities where there is highest demand."

Howden said he understands matching supply with demand can be challenging but called the situation frustrating for him and his staff. "It looks bad on us, but it's out of our control," said Howden. According to the ministry, about 157,000 Albertans have received a COVID-19 vaccine this season. The province's respiratory illness dashboard, which tracks data from the season starting Aug. 30, lists 668 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 148 hospitalizations, eight ICU admissions and six deaths. The province officially rolled out COVID-19 vaccines on Oct. 19 but told pharmacies in the days prior they could start administering doses early if they had supply.

With files from CBC News