Ontarians 75+ can start booking COVID-19 vaccine appointments on Monday

Starting Monday, Ontarians aged 75 and over can book a COVID-19 vaccination appointment at mass immunization clinics across the province, and those 60 and over can book an appointment at a pharmacy.

Premier Doug Ford made the announcement on Friday morning alongside Health Minister Christine Elliott, Solicitor General Sylvia Jones and retired Gen. Rick Hillier, chair of the province’s COVID-19 vaccine task force.

As of Monday, Ontario residents turning 75 or older in 2021 and who don’t live in a congregate care setting can schedule a vaccination appointment at a mass immunization clinic to get their first dose. They can book their appointment on the government’s website or call the Provincial Vaccine Information Line number at 1-888-999-6488.

“Today's announcement makes one thing clear. We have the infrastructure in place and we're ready. All we need is certainty and a steady supply of vaccines. For those over 75, or friends and family supporting them, please start booking your appointment starting Monday,” Ford said.

Currently, Ontario residents 80 and up are allowed to book an appointment on the booking site, which launched on Monday.

However, the province has been inoculating individuals 80 and over since February at long-term care homes and hospital sites across the province before mass immunization clinics were formed.

Since the provincial booking system kicked off, more than 239,000 appointments have been scheduled for the first and second doses.

“We have noticed that the number of people over 80 have declined in booking appointments and that's why we now are obviously ready to go to booking appointments for those 75 years of age and older,” Hillier said.

On Friday, Ford also announced that the AstraZeneca vaccine will be expanded for use on Ontarians aged 60 and up in alignment with the National Advisory Committee on Immunization’s (NACI) new recommendation that the vaccine is effective on seniors.

The vaccine is currently being used on people between the ages of 60 and 64 at Ontario pharmacies, as there was insufficient data about how well it functions in people over 65.

However, this week NACI reversed its advice saying there is now “real-world evidence” to support giving the vaccine to older seniors as well.

The vaccine was chosen to be used in pharmacies as it’s easier to move and store compared to Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines which need to be kept in freezers that can reach extremely cold temperatures.

While there have been recent concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine being linked to blood clots, Health Canada has deemed it safe and has said the benefits far outweigh the risks. Ford encouraged residents to take whatever vaccine is offered to them.

“I truly believe it’s safe,” Ford said. “For a second, if anyone ever told me it wasn't, any health professional here that I listened to, I’d pull it away in 10 seconds. I’d never jeopardize the health of anyone. But what I've heard from the docs, AstraZeneca, and any other treatment, and Pfizer, if you take the shot it's going to do two things, it's going to keep you out of the hospital and it's going to save your life.”

During the press conference, Hillier added that he expects vaccine appointments will be offered to the next age group of Ontarians in early April.

“I'm guessing early April would be that decision time for the next age group, I'd love to be proven wrong in that one but early April in the 70s. But we will continue to assess and we do it based on the number of appointments being booked,” Hillier said.

Ontario expands pharmacy vaccine rollout

The government also announced that it will be expanding its pharmacy vaccine rollout plan with an additional 350 pharmacies jumping on board across the province in the next two weeks.

It’s expected that the number of pharmacies administering the AstraZeneca vaccine across the province will rise to approximately 1,500 by the end of April.

As part of a pilot project that started last Thursday, more than 300 pharmacies in Toronto, Windsor-Essex, and Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington began offering the vaccine to those between the ages of 60 and 64 years old.

The government said details on additional locations and the application process for pharmacy participation will be shared in the coming days.

Eligible Ontarians can book an appointment at participating pharmacies online.

In addition, as of last week some doctor’s offices across the province began administering the AstraZeneca vaccine to their patients. These primary care offices are directly contacting eligible patients for an appointment.

More vaccine shipments expected next week

Although the pharmacy rollout is helping to inoculate more Ontarians faster, some pharmacies said that they were running short on doses less than a week after the program launched.

Yesterday, the U.S. announced that it will start shipping some of its AstraZeneca vaccine supply to other countries, including Canada.

Ottawa has an agreement to purchase 20 million doses of the vaccine produced in U.S. facilities but the U.S. has blocked the export of vaccines, saying it is prioritizing Americans first. However, AstraZeneca has not yet been approved for use in the U.S., resulting in doses sitting on shelves and inching closer to their expiration date.

The White House said it is working to ship 1.5 million doses to Canada as part of a “loan agreement.”

Federal Procurement Minister Anita Anand told CP24 on Thursday night that Canada will receive those doses by the end of March.

During a press conference yesterday, Ford praised the U.S. for their help and said he’s ready to drive down to the U.S. himself to personally pick up vaccines.

A U.S. official told Reuters that the doses will be flowing to Canada “shortly.”

In March, Ontario is expected to receive a total of 1,454,310 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The government said a limited supply of other vaccines were received this month, including 483,700 doses of Moderna and 194,500 of AstraZeneca.

Ontario is also set to receive a huge boost in vaccine supply starting next week, according to the latest delivery schedule from the federal government.

Deliveries of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will more than double to around 400,000 doses a week through the middle of May, while Moderna will also double its previous shipment to about 323,000 doses through the end of March.

As of Thursday evening, more than 294,700 people have been fully vaccinated across the province.

The government has administered over 1.4 million doses since mid-December, with more than 61,100 doses yesterday alone.