A day after the province announced the launch of a pharmacy COVID-19 vaccine program for people in their early 60s, a number of people have reported being turned away due to confusion about who is eligible.

A number of customers who showed up for appointments at Toronto pharmacies Thursday morning told CP24 that they were turned away after being told they were ineligible, even though they are currently 64.

Some were told that because they are turning 65 this year, they are in eligible.

“In the paper and in the news they said if you're between 60 and 64, you can get the shot. So I booked it yesterday morning for myself and my wife, and she's 64 today but will be 65 in April and they called last night and they said she couldn't take it because she was born in 1956, as opposed to being 64,” one man told CP24 outside a Toronto pharmacy. “So I'm happy to get the vaccine but it's a little confusing of how they've organized it.”

The provincial government said yesterday that those born between 1957 and 1961 would be eligible.

Health Minister Christine Elliott’s office clarified Thursday that people are eligible if they are 60 to 64 years old as of the day of vaccination or, if they will be, or have been 60 to 64 in 2021. 

That means those who are turning 60 or 65 this year are also eligible.

Officials said those who were turned away because of the confusion should be able to rebook shots.

Health Minister Christine Elliott told reporters at Queen’s Park Thursday that the government is working to send pharmacies guidelines to clarify eligibility for the pharmacy shots.

“Yes, we are working with pharmacies, so that they understand that we are prioritizing people aged 60 to 64 in pharmacies but that … if you're 59 now but you will turn 60 perhaps in September -- and we're looking at March -- you can still be given the vaccine,” Elliott said.

The pharmacy vaccinations take advantage of Ontario's newly acquired supply of AstraZeneca vaccine, which is being given to those under 65 due to limited data about its efficacy in older people.

The shots are being distributed through 325 pharmacies in Toronto, Windsor-Essex, and the Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington public health unit.

Doctors’ offices in Peel Region and other areas are also being given thousands of shots to administer over the next month.

Infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch, who sits on the province’s COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force, told CP24 Thursday that nobody should be turned away because they fall slightly outside the initial guidance from the province.

“No one's gonna be turned away, because they're you know technically out of that date range,” he said.  “If you're 60 to 64, you should be able to get this vaccine.

He also said that while pharmacy shots are initially rolling out in just three public health units, more areas will start to see pharmacy options soon.

“It's in pharmacies, and it's going to expand to pharmacies all over the province,” he said.

Booking methods vary by pharmacy, with some taking online appointments, some taking phone appointments and others taking walk-ins.

Some pharmacies reported being flooded with calls from people trying to book an appointment and seeking clarification Thursday.

A number of pharmacies started giving shots yesterday, but most began Thursday.

Dozens of people waited in line for more than 90 minutes to try get a walk-in appointment at one pharmacy on The Danforth. Others started waiting overnight outside other pharmacies.

“We saw last night the big lineup that's outside Shoppers, so this is the second day I think and we were just lucky enough to get in line this morning and move pretty quickly through the lines,” one man told CP24.

[See a full list of Toronto pharmacies taking appointments here]

Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath tore into the Ford government at Queen’s Park Thursday over the confusion.

“The rollout of the vaccines have been completely confusing and messy,” she said.

A number of doctors and other experts have also criticized Ontario's vaccine rollout as confusing and poorly planned. Seniors over 80 who signed up to get vaccinated when they were first allowed to do so earlier this month found themselves waiting outside in freezing conditions at some hospitals.

Indoor lineups with poor distancing have also been reported at other vaccination sites.

Ford responded to Horwath Thursday, saying Ontario is “leading the country in vaccinations.”

To date Ontario has administered 1,019,407 COVID-19 vaccine shots. The The Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines all require two doses, which are being spaced roughly four months apart in order to vaccinate as many people as possible. More than 281,000 people have received two doses so far.

March and April are expected to see a major ramp-up of COVID-19 vaccinations in Ontario, with hundreds of thousands of doses expected to arrive each week.

A booking system for mass vaccination sites is expected to go live in Toronto on Friday, allowing those 80 and over to book an appointment at three city sites which open next week. The city has said that those who turn 80 in 2021 are also eligible to book an appointment.

The booking system is expected to fully launch provincewide on Monday, along with a call centre that will allow seniors to book appointments by phone.