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15h ago

Quebec Ends Universal Free COVID Vaccines, Restricts No-Cost Shots to High-Risk Groups

Officials cite INSPQ advice on cost-effectiveness to justify a shift toward risk-based access.

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A person receives a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine from Skippack Pharmacy during the Senior Fair at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, U.S. September 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah Beier
FILE - Pharmacist Kenni Clark injects Robert Champion, of Lawrence, Mass., with a booster dosage of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination clinic at City of Lawrence's "The Center," Dec. 29, 2021, in Lawrence, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

Overview

  • Free doses in Quebec will be limited to people 65 and older, residents of seniors’ and nursing homes, pregnant people, health-care workers, residents of remote regions, dialysis patients, and those with chronic or immunodeficient conditions.
  • Quebec’s health department confirms the policy for this fall, with the pharmacy owners’ association reporting out-of-pocket prices of $150 to $180 per dose for those not eligible, a figure not yet published by the government.
  • The province points to an INSPQ bulletin concluding vaccination under age 75 is not cost-effective, while noting most healthy adults already have COVID-19 immunity.
  • National guidance from NACI allows vaccination for everyone six months and older, and experts warn that paid access could widen health inequities and create uneven coverage across provinces.
  • Alberta previously moved to a two‑phase, clinic-based program that charges most residents $100 per shot while covering specified high-risk groups, a change the minister defends by citing low uptake and large vaccine wastage.