Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press

Albertans can begin pre-ordering COVID-19 shots for the fall after a recent policy shift.

Those looking to get vaccinated will still need to book an appointment and most will have to pay more than $100 to get it.

Premier Danielle Smith's government announced the policy shift in June.

Smith has said $135 million got "flushed down the drain" last year, with doses wasted in part because Albertans are increasingly choosing to not get them.

The former head of Alberta’s front-line health agency says she's aware of misinformation that may compromise a third-party investigation into a multimillion-dollar health contracting scandal.

Athana Mentzelopoulos, once the CEO of Alberta Health Services, filed a lawsuit against the provincial government in February alleging wrongful dismissal.

She said in a letter Friday that claims are circulating publicly that she was unwilling to meet with retired Manitoba judge Raymond Wyant for an interview in his investigation.

A new report commissioned by the Alberta government says the City of Medicine Hat has been hobbled for years by a hostile dysfunctional city hall and something must be done.

“The governance function of the city is ineffective and is characterized by rancour, suspicion and accusations,” stated the report, authored by Ian McCormack and released by the Alberta government on Monday.

Alberta is rolling out new regulations this fall banning transgender athletes from playing women’s sports, but the province will still welcome out-of-province transgender competitors.

Tourism and Sport Minister Andrew Boitchenko said the discrepancy is out of his hands.

“We don't have authority to regulate athletes from different jurisdictions,” he said in an interview.

In a followup statement, ministry spokeswoman Vanessa Gomez added it's due to outside sporting organizations being bound by out-of-province or international guidelines.

Alberta's government is jumping on board a federal initiative aimed at saving Canadians a buck if they stay close to home this summer.

The province says it's offering its own free and discounted admissions as part of the Canada Strong Pass program, introduced by the federal government last month.

First promised as a way to promote Canadian tourism in response to the U.S. tariff war, the federal pass includes free access to national parks and historic sites, along with free rail tickets and museum admission for those under 18.

The head of emergency medicine for Alberta's doctors association is challenging Premier Danielle Smith to join him on shift to see the frustration of patients jammed for hours in hallways and the moral injury of doctors looking into the eyes of the those who wait.

“It's this kind of vicarious trauma, this inability to help when we're helpers, that is causing us to leave,” Dr. Warren Thirsk said in an interview.

“Unless you experience it, you don't really get it.

Two former members of Alberta's governing United Conservative Party are resuscitating the province's once-dominant Progressive Conservative Party.

Former infrastructure minister Peter Guthrie and legislature member Scott Sinclair were booted from caucus earlier this year for pushing back against the Premier Danielle Smith's government and now sit as Independents.

Sinclair says the province's two-party system has become too divisive, and they want to galvanize support from Albertans who feel they don't have a political home.

An Alberta company swept up in allegations of government corruption says it’s being further harmed by the suppression of a report it believes could clear the name of its CEO.

Medical supply company MHCare Medical is calling on the provincial government to release an audit initiated by Alberta’s former head of health services into certain health contracts.

Alberta's auditor general has been granted his request for nearly $1 million in extra funding to dig deeper into allegations of corruption in private health care contracts.

Auditor general Doug Wylie says the scope and complexity of the probe means his office needs to hire additional help and cover legal costs.

Members from both the United Conservative Party government and Opposition NDP who sit on the legislature committee that approved the request say Wylie is doing important work.

Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi is looking to finally win a seat in the legislature after a year of sitting on the sidelines.

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