VANCOUVER Police Deputy Chief Constable Howard Chow, President of the BC Association of Chiefs of Police, in a statement regarding vaccines for frontline workers, said on Thursday: “On behalf of police leaders and police officers throughout B.C., I would like to thank government for recognizing the unpredictable work of first responders and making the AstraZeneca/SII COVISHIELD vaccine available to frontline police officers.

“Police operations did not change significantly when the pandemic began and crime in B.C. did not stop. Police officers in the field are unable to eliminate the risk of exposure because they cannot always practice physical distancing due to the nature of their work. We are grateful for the opportunity to protect our officers who will continue to focus on the important task at hand, which is to protect B.C. communities.

“On behalf of the BCACP, thank you to [Health] Minister Adrian Dix, [Provincial Health Officer] Dr. Bonnie Henry and the Ministry of Health for taking a measured approach to ensure the most vulnerable British Columbians are protected first and then for making the vaccine available to frontline workers. Thank you also to [Public Safety] Minister Mike Farnworth and Assistant Deputy Minister Wayne Rideout from B.C. Police Services for their advocacy and efforts in ensuring first responders are protected from COVID-19.

“We also send our sincerest thanks to the healthcare workers who have done invaluable work to protect our most vulnerable communities over the past year and are continuing their important work through immunization efforts.”