REGINA -- Saskatchewan’s premier is continuing to encourage people in the province to get their COVID-19 vaccine.

“I'm asking all Saskatchewan people that are able, please go out and get vaccinated. It is the way through this pandemic,” said Premier Scott Moe on Friday. “All paths out of the pandemic lead through a Saskatchewan vaccination centre.”

So far, 54 per cent of adults in the province have received their first dose. The highest uptake is in residents age 80 and older – who have been eligible for the longest – with 88 per cent of the population getting a first shot.

Eligibility dropped from age 29 and over to 23 and above this week. As of Friday, 29,722 – or 16 per cent – of Saskatchewan residents between the ages of 18 and 29 had received their first dose.

Moe took to Twitter to challenge the 20-plus crowd to get out and get immunized.

Moe said people are putting themselves – and potentially those around them – at “great risk” by not getting the jab.

“It keeps you safe. It keeps your family safe and by extension, is going to keep all of us in this province safe.”

According to the premier, the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) will start sending out “correspondence” to people who haven’t been vaccinated to remind them of the importance.

VACCINE UPTAKE IN THE FAR NORTH

A presentation given by the SHA to doctors across the province on Thursday night showed there is low vaccine uptake in Far North zones – where the age eligibility has been 18 and over since the beginning of May – compared to other regions of the province.

Moe acknowledged the province still has some work to do in regards to its vaccination program in the Far North, but said the region is in a “markedly different position” now than it was at the beginning of the year.

Cases peaked in the Far North zones in January, with 454 active cases in the Far Northeast, 336 in the Far Northwest and 87 in the Far North Central. As of Friday, there are 21 active cases in the Far Northeast, 42 in the Far Northwest and just one active case of COVID-19 in the Far North Central.

Moe said he believes the decline shows the vaccines are working.

“I think it’s a real testament to the fact of how effective these vaccines are, even at one dose.”

CURRENT VACCINE ELIGIBILITY

As of Friday, Saskatchewan residents age 23 and older are able to get the vaccine. The age eligibility is 18 and up in the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District.

Eligibility is slated to drop to 20-plus on May 16; 16-plus on May 18; and 12-plus on May 20.