CALGARY — The Alberta government has now confirmed that, for those who must pay for the cost of a COVID-19 vaccine shot this fall, it will cost $100.
The price is one of the details rolled out Friday by the province as part of its two-phase plan to deliver the shots free to some, but with a fee for others.
Those eligible to get the shot for free, including health-care workers, some seniors and those with underlying medical conditions, will get appointments starting Oct. 1.
Everyone else can expect to get appointments starting three weeks after that, but will have to pay the $100 administration fee.
The update comes two months after the Alberta government first announced residents would have to pay out-of-pocket for the COVID-19 vaccine. It stemmed from the decision by federal authorities to hand off vaccine procurement responsibilities to the provinces.
Premier Danielle Smith’s government has been criticized for making citizens pay for the vaccine, but Smith says it’s necessary to avoid millions of dollars in wasted medicine.
The government has estimated various costs due to wastage, and on Friday pegged that cost to an estimated $44 million for the approximately 401,000 doses that went unused last year.
"We’ll try it this way. This year, we are trying to mitigate costs because it is an expensive intervention," Smith said this week.
"We don’t pay for the RSV shot … so we’re just trying to align our approach on COVID with the same approach we’re taking on RSV.”
Public health experts have called Alberta's COVID-19 strategy irresponsible and said it would create more barriers to getting vaccinated.
The province has already reversed part of Alberta's new vaccine policy, which initially would have required health-care workers to pay for the shot. Smith said this week that union demands during bargaining negotiations led to the change.
Earlier Friday, NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi reiterated his call to make the COVID-19 vaccine universally covered.
"Albertans deserve the same access to this vaccine that every other Canadian gets," he said in a statement.
The province has also changed how vaccines will be doled out, as pharmacies are no longer being given a supply. Instead, residents this year will need to receive their COVID-19 shots at public health clinics.
Meanwhile, the government of neighbouring British Columbia said those who don't qualify for the free shot in Alberta can travel there to get one.
It said B.C. residents will get first priority and non-B.C. residents should prepare to wait "several weeks" for an appointment. Pharmacists also can't immunize non-residents, it said.
Jumping two provinces east, the Manitoba government said out-of-province visitors are welcome to get their vaccine free of charge.
The Saskatchewan government said its fall immunization plans were still in the works and wouldn't say whether it would offer the shot to Albertans for free. Residents of Lloydminster, which straddles the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary, can access the publicly-funded vaccine.
Alberta residents can preorder their COVID-19 vaccine online until Sept. 30, where they can also preorder their flu vaccine. The flu vaccine is still publicly covered in Alberta.
Those who didn't preorder will still be able to book a vaccine appointment when they're available in October.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2025.
Matthew Scace, The Canadian Press
