EDMONTON — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her government’s new policy forcing many Albertans to pay out of pocket for a COVID-19 vaccination is about focusing on those who need it the most.
It could set a precedent across the country after the federal government put provinces in charge of buying COVID shots earlier this year.
Speaking Saturday on her call-in radio show the morning after her government announced the move, Smith said $135 million got "flushed down the drain" last year with doses wasted in part because Albertans are increasingly choosing to not take them.
“I think it's because it doesn't work particularly well, if you want the truth,” Smith said.
Just under 14 per cent of Alberta’s 4.8 million residents got vaccinated for the virus last season.
"It's those that are healthy, that choose to do it because they've talked to their doctors, those are the ones that will have a little bit lesser priority," she said.
Smith's government will still pay for some to get the shots, including those who have compromised immune systems or are on social programs. Seniors in a congregate setting will also be covered.
It's all part of an effort to get more bang for the taxpayer's buck, Smith said.
"We believe in vaccine choice, but we don't pay for everything," she said.
She pointed to higher influenza vaccination rates, pegged at 21 per cent last year, suggesting that COVID vaccines don't match the effectiveness of others, including for the measles.
Alberta, which is grappling with a spike in measles cases not seen for almost 40 years, is falling well short of the 95 per cent immunization rate experts say is needed to protect the population.
Smith's United Conservative Party government doesn't yet know the amount Albertans, including many seniors over the age of 65, will need to pay for a COVID shot. It estimates it could be $110 each.
Routine influenza vaccines will continue to be publicly covered.
Public health-care experts in Alberta say the province's new COVID policy will mean more barriers to getting vaccinated and higher costs for things like hospitalizations and severe complications.
Dr. Lynora Saxinger, a physician and University of Alberta infectious diseases expert, told The Canadian Press Saturday that both COVID and influenza vaccines are formulated based on seasonal changes, so Smith's prioritization was perplexing.
"They're probably pretty similar in terms of how much potential they have to prevent severe illness — hospitalization, death, and then all those other things that come on the heels of both influenza and COVID," she said.
She noted that for those 65 years or older, the risk of pneumonia, heart attack and stroke are much higher after a patient has had COVID or influenza, so vaccination can significantly reduce risk.
In a news release, Smith's government pointed out that guidelines offered by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, under anti-vaccine advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The U.S. federal health agency recommended stopping vaccines for healthy pregnant women and healthy children.
Alberta's Primary and Preventative Health Care Minister Adriana LaGrange declined an interview request from The Canadian Press. Her office also declined to say whether LaGrange agreed with Smith's assessment that the COVID vaccine "doesn't work particularly well."
Maddison McKee, LaGrange's press secretary, said in a statement late Friday night that the government is following national guidance.
But, McKee confirmed Saturday the province is bucking one recommendation from Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization that health care workers get a shot.
"Health care workers who do not fall into a higher-risk group will be eligible to purchase a vaccine," McKee said in a statement.
Saxinger said vaccinating workers isn't just about preventing an occupational risk — it's about protecting patients.
She said influenza data shows that if you vaccinate health care workers, you reduce the death rate of the vulnerable people in their care.
The Opposition NDP has long accused the UCP of being anti-vaccination, and has called for the government to better promote the public health benefits of getting vaccinated.
NDP health critic Sarah Hoffman said Friday it's a dangerous, callous and anti-science move to charge Albertans who want to protect their health and their loved ones.
University of Calgary health law professor Lorian Hardcastle has warned of the potential extra costs to the health care system, and has said she worries that Albertans are getting the message that vaccines just aren't that important.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2025.
Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
