Pregnant people on P.E.I. now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine

P.E.I. is now allowing pregnant people to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

According to the province's website on COVID-19 vaccination, those who are pregnant are now eligible to book.

Some pregnant Islanders have been asking to be prioritized.

Alexandra Taylor isone of those pregnant Islanders. She saidthe change is a relief.

"I felt pretty elated," she said. "I'm really thankful for the government for listening to our request and giving us that bodily autonomy.

"I know not every pregnant person will take that vaccine and that's fine. But at least now those of us who do want it can make an informed decision with our [obstetricians]and our physicians."

Taylor has already booked in for a dose of vaccine this week in Summerside. Several of her friends who are pregnant have also booked in.

"Not every pregnant person needs to get it, that's not the argument we are making here. We just want the choice and I think all Canadians who are pregnant deserve to make that choice."

New Brunswick and Ontario also added pregnancy to their vaccine priority lists earlier this week, following a jumpin intensive care hospitalizations in Toronto among pregnant peoplewithCOVID-19.

This all comes following the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada's call to prioritize the group.

Pregnancy has made people in Alberta eligible for the shot since March.The same group was prioritized in Saskatchewan earlier this month.

Some other provinces haven't followedsuit.

Nova Scotia is following an age-based vaccine rollout.

The province is following the National Advisory Committee on Immunization on vaccine use, according to an email from Nova Scotia Health.

"NACI recommends a vaccine may be offered during pregnancy if a risk assessment deems that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the potential risks for the individual," the email said.

These Islanders are currently eligible for a vaccine

• People over 50.
• Islanders over 16 with underlying medical conditions and those who are pregnant, and all eligible members of their households.
• Front-line workers over 16 who interact with the public and can't work virtually.
• Public and private sector health-care workers, including clinicians and support staff, who work directly with patients in the community.
• Health-care workers not on the front line who are needed to maintain health-care system capacity.
• Anyone in priority groups remaining from Phase 1 vaccine rollouts (December2020 to March 2021), including front-line health-care workers.
• Firefighters, police officers, power-line workers.
• Residents and staff of long-term care homes.
• Adults living in Indigenous communities.
• Residents and staff of shared living facilities.
• Truck drivers and other rotational workers.

You can find more information about how to get a vaccine here.

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