Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said the province is focusing on getting the population vaccinated, especially in rural areas where vaccine levels are lagging behind.
Kenney addressed the issue at a roundtable with Alberta Weekly Newspaper Association members, including The Drumheller Mail, on Friday, June 11.
“We do want to focus on rural because we are seeing significantly lower vaccine uptake in many parts of rural Alberta compared to metropolitan areas and cities,” said Kenney. “I think we see two things, one is vaccine hesitancy, which tends to be stronger among older rural folks, and they think maybe because they live more distant or are not in a crowded neighbourhood they are safer from COVID. Maybe some people have heard misinformation about the vaccine as well. The second challenge would be amongst younger men. I think every man just imagines they are completely immune to any kind of sickness. It is true that younger, healthy people are pretty much unaffected by COVID, but they need to understand if you are not vaccinated, you can still transmit it to other people.”
The roundtable came on Friday, two days before the province announced new incentives, including a $1million prize.
Alberta residents over the age of 18 who have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine can register to be entered in the draw for the $1-million prize.
“This lottery will help us cross that 70 per cent threshold so we can reopen and stay open. Albertans have already responded in such a big way to our vaccine program and we’ve been able to lift many health restrictions because of their efforts. We just need one final push so we can lift them all and get back to normal. If you’ve been waiting to book or you’ve been looking for a reason to get the shot, here it is,” said Kenney on Sunday.
As of Sunday, about 69 per cent of eligible Albertans have received their first vaccination. In Drumheller-Starland County, 63 per cent of the population over 12 have received their first dose. The lowest vaccine rate is among people aged between 12-19 (45.9 per cent) and ages 20-39 (48.4 per cent).
He stresses the importance of vaccines and helping people make an informed choice.
“My message to everybody is ‘if you got a loved one, a friend, someone you know who has been getting misinformation online or from the rumour mill about the vaccines, please intervene and give them the real hard verifiable scientific information about the vaccines because you could save their lives,’” he said.
Registration for the $1million prize will close one week after 70 per cent of eligible Albertans have received the first dose. The winner will be drawn when Stage 3 of Alberta’s Open for Summer Plan begins.
Details on how to register was announced on June 14.
