Ontario will start booking appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations on March 15

Thestar.com
Feb. 25, 2021
Rob Ferguson

Ontario has finally shed some light on when residents aged 60 and older will get COVID-19 vaccinations, but left the younger set in the dark.

After weeks of criticism over a lack of detail as millions struggle through lockdowns or put their lives on the line as essential workers, the province says a website and a telephone hotline for booking vaccination appointments are scheduled to open March 15.

Shots will begin a week later for people 80 and older, April 15 for those 75 and up, May 1 for Ontarians in their early 70s, June 1 for the 65-plus and July 1 for anyone over 60.

The dates came from retired general Rick Hillier, who is leading Ontario’s vaccination distribution task force, after Health Minister Christine Elliott promised “people will know when and how they will be able to get the vaccines.”

That pledge left many feeling shortchanged, with opposition parties concerned there was no news release or documentation provided on the latest elements of a vaccination plan that clearly remains a work in progress.

“Yesterday we were told that every Ontarian would soon know precisely when and how they’d get a vaccine. Instead, this morning we were left with more questions than answers,” said Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner.

There were no specifics about vaccination schedules for essential workers, people of all ages who have underlying conditions that put them at greater risk if they catch COVID-19, or Ontarians in their 50s and younger.

“We have a little ways to go on that,” Premier Doug Ford told a news conference. “We’re limited in that we need vaccines.”

Hillier said sticking to the dates he outlined will depend on vaccine shipments coming from the federal government as expected after shortfalls from approved manufacturers Pfizer and Moderna in recent weeks.

Ontarians who use the website or hotline will be directed using postal codes to the vaccination centre closest to their homes, which could be a large site like a sports arena or something at a smaller scale, he added. Pharmacies will handle about 10 to 20 per cent of shots, but no vaccines will be going to doctor’s offices in the near future.

Hillier cautioned against trying to book before your age category is eligible, saying those attempts will be rejected, but added that seniors will be allowed to have friends or family make appointments for them.

Critics accused him of changing timelines since a previous announcement Friday, when he said those over 80 could expect shots to begin a week earlier than is now planned, and suggested Ontarians in their 70s and 60s would be eligible in April and May.

The government is “making it up on the fly,” said New Democrat Leader Andrea Horwath. “Businesses have gone belly up. People have lost their lives ... The government does not seem to get this is not good enough.”

Experts said the time frames for vaccinations could be moved up as Health Canada approves more vaccines from other manufacturers, with AstraZeneca’s close to being finalized and vaccines from Johnson and Johnson and Novavax under consideration.

“Just to state the obvious, this is slow,” Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious diseases specialist at University Health Network and an adviser to the vaccine task force, wrote on Twitter. “But this is just with Pfizer and Moderna,” he added, noting other vaccines could “significantly bump up” the schedule.

Hillier said people under 60 may have to wait until “early summer” for details on when they become eligible for shots, and added he is waiting for Ford and his cabinet to determine a full list of essential workers who could get vaccinations starting in May.

Essential workers now slated for shots starting in April include first responders, teachers and staff in the food processing industry, where there have been many outbreaks.

Hillier deflected criticisms that Ontario is slower than provinces like Alberta and Quebec in getting an appointment system up and running. He noted that it won’t be needed until mid-March, when enough vaccine doses will be available to inject people outside nursing and retirement homes, their essential caregivers and front-line health care workers.

However, he acknowledged, “I would have liked to have had it earlier” and said officials are working “furiously” to get the system operational and stress tested. Alberta’s booking system crashed after opening Wednesday because of high demand.

“We want to make sure we nail this,” Ford said.

Older Ontarians are being targeted first because the risk of death and hospitalization is highest to those over age 60, a category that accounts for 95 per cent of fatalities from COVID-19.

Health authorities are now completing vaccinations in nursing and retirement homes, resuming shots for their essential caregivers and front-line health-care workers who work directly with patients, and moving on to other congregate living settings and adults receiving home care for chronic medical conditions.

A first round of shots for health-care workers was postponed earlier this year because short shipments from Pfizer and Moderna prompted the province to focus on long-term-care homes, which have been devastated in the pandemic and suffered the highest death toll.

Critics said the government could have saved hundreds of lives if it had concentrated on nursing homes sooner.