Burnaby youth with Down syndrome asks for fast-tracked vaccination against COVID-19
The parents of a 17-year-old with Down syndrome are urging the B.C. government to allow early access to the COVID-19 vaccine. Other advocates say the cohort is small enough to easily be fast-tracked.
Social Sharing This thing with COVID has got me all worried because it s taking forever, says Aaron Waddingham
CBC News ·
Posted: Jan 24, 2021 6:26 PM PT | Last Updated: January 25 Disabled people need to have the vaccine quicker, says 17-year-old Aaron Waddingham, seen here with his parents at their Burnaby home.(Mike Zimmer/CBC)
As B.C. rolls out its COVID-19 immunization program, there are concerns vulnerable populations are being left behind.
BURNABY, B.C. The head of a Burnaby-based organization is calling on the province to prioritize people with Down syndrome for the COVID-19 vaccine. Wayne Leslie is CEO of the Down Syndrome Resource Foundation. He has written an open letter to provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix asking for more consideration regarding people with the disability, particularly those over 40. “Someone (with Down syndrome) in their 40s has more age- and health-related problems and challenges that normally, in the typical population, show up in individuals over the age of 70,” Leslie told CTV News. “They have not been identified as an increased-risk group at all.”
B.C. advocate calls on province to prioritize people with Down syndrome for COVID-19 vaccine
People with Down syndrome are 10 times more likely to die from the virus, according to the Down Syndrome Resource Foundation, which has written to Dr. Bonnie Henry to ask if the vulnerable population can be moved up the vaccine queue.
Social Sharing
CBC News ·
Posted: Jan 16, 2021 9:00 AM PT | Last Updated: January 16
Andrew Bingham, 27, says while he tries to stay connected with friends using technology, COVID-19 has already cost him a job, sports, and his social life.(Submitted by the Down Syndrome Resource Foundation)
The provincial government has begun vaccinating British Columbia s most vulnerable against COVID-19 and an advocacy group for people with Down syndrome is hoping the group it represents will be added to this priority queue.