Sask. only province to offer all kids 5-11 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccine fewer than 8 weeks after 1st

Saskatchewan is taking a different approach thanthe rest of the country to vaccinating children age five to 11 against COVID-19.

The land of the living skiesis the only jurisdiction in Canada not sticking with a recommendation from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI)on immunizations for children in that age group.

NACI has recommended that children wait eight weeks before receiving a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, but that guidance isn't being used in Saskatchewan.

The province's websitesays the "the optimal interval between doses is eight weeks; however, families may choose to receive the second dose as early as 21 days after the initial dose."

That three-week interval is in line with the recommendationfrom Pfizer-BioNTech, the company that manufactures the vaccine, but every other province and territory has said it is notoffering children in the general public a second dose until eight weeks has passed.

In British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova ScotiaandPrince Edward Islandthe second dose will be "offered 8 weeks or more after the first dose."

"Eight weeks here," a spokesperson for the New Brunswick health department wrote in an email.

The North West Territories, Yukon and Nunavut are also all following the NACI recommendation.

Only Manitoba is doing something slightly different. There, most children 5 to 11 in the province will get the doses at least eight weeks apart. However, the Manitoba is recommending that children in First Nations communities get their second dosethree weeks after getting their first.

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CBC News asked the Saskatchewan government why it was choosing to use a different interval than whatNACIrecommended. It did not answer that question.

The policy appears to have even tripped up some policy makers.On Tuesday, Health Minister Paul Merriman was asked about the vaccine interval.He said he would need to speak with Dr. Saqib Shahab, Saskatchewan's chief medical health officer.

"The recommendationis eight weeks. I'd have to check with Dr. Shahab to see if that's changed but I don't think it has," he told reporters.

Shahab confirmedthat same day that the three week interval was an option that would be left up to parents.

"If due to specific reasons, you know, and that may be related to travel or other reasons... if a parent wishes that child receive a second dose earlier, that certainly is possible at three weeks."

CBC News asked the province for clarification on whatthe standard is.In a statement, the province saidit had now updated its website to note that the option to provide a child with a second dose must be done with informed consent.