With young children in our province set to roll up their sleeves for the COVID-19 vaccine, the Nova Scotia Liberal Party wants to see in-school immunizations offered as an option coming out of the Houston government’s press conference today.

“COVID-19 cases are climbing in our province’s schools, so it’s imperative we get children vaccinated as quickly as possible,” says Liberal Leader Iain Rankin. “That means giving options to families on where their child can receive their shots.”

The NSTU stated in a recent media interview that there was an initial desire by Public Health to offer in-school vaccination clinics, that was “backpedalled” on. Newfoundland, PEI, Quebec, and Manitoba have plans to offer in-school vaccinations in addition to other sites like pharmacies and pop-up clinics. But Nova Scotia Health Minister Michelle Thompson has said the province will not be following suit. The vaccine will be administered predominantly through pharmacies, so parents can be with their children when they receive their shot.

“That’s absolutely an important option,” says Rankin. “But this shouldn’t be an ‘either or’ scenario – this is about combatting the spread of COVID-19 in our schools by making the shot as widely available as possible to Nova Scotia families, including in-school clinics.”