Quebec is lowering the minimum age requirement to register for the AstraZeneca brand of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Quebec Premier François Legault announced the measure Tuesday, on the heels of other provinces doing the same.
Under the plan, any Quebecer who is 45 and older can book their first AstraZeneca dose, as of Wednesday morning. Prior to the change, only people older than 55 were able to get that vaccine at walk-in clinics.
READ MORE: Ontario, Alberta to lower minimum age for AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from 55 to 40
Quebec had temporarily hit pause on administering the AstraZeneca vaccine to anyone younger than that amid guidance from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization about a possible link between the shot and rare blood clots.
Health authorities had spent the weekend actively encouraging people who are eligible for inoculation to get their first shot. In Montreal, soundtrucks made the rounds in areas hard hit by the pandemic in order to get the message out.
Since late December, Quebec has administered more than 2.4 million doses of the vaccine — the majority of which have been first shots.
The province has vowed to give a first jab to any adult who wants one by June 24.
