Alberta moved into Stage 2 of the Open for Summer plan on Thursday, June 10 as active case numbers and hospitalizations continue to trend downward; Stage 2 allows indoor fitness activities and indoor and outdoor dining to resume, and Albertans can gather outdoors with up to 20 people.
Once at least 70 per cent of Albertans have received their first dose of the vaccine, the two week wait for Stage 3 of reopening will be triggered; more than 3.3 million doses of the vaccine have been administered across the province as of Saturday, June 12.
“Thank you so much to the 68 per cent of Albertans who have gone out of their way to get at least their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Thanks to you we crushed the spring spike of COVID and we are starting to get our lives back to normal,” Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said in a video update on Saturday, June 12.
Premier Kenney gave the update from an empty Edmonton Expo Centre--one of the drop-in vaccine clinics throughout the province--and announced the province is opening a lottery for Albertans 18 and older who have received their first vaccine dose, with three $1 million prizes.
Alberta is not the only Canadian province combating vaccine hesitancy with a monetary incentive.
Vaccinated Manitobans will also be rewarded with nearly $2 million in prizes available to win. Several states, including California and North Carolina, are also offering residents incentives to get their vaccine.
As of Monday, June 14 the Town of Drumheller continues to have zero active cases of COVID-19, with 463 recovered cases-including 181 recovered cases at the Drumheller Institution. There are zero cases in Starland County, four active cases in Kneehill County, and five active cases in Wheatland County.
