Ontario accelerates second dose COVID vaccine booking
TORONTO, ON., June 3, 2021 – Today, due to an increasing supply of vaccines the province just announced that as of 8:00 a.m. on Monday, June 7, 2021, individuals turning ages 70 and over in 2021, as well as individuals who received their first dose of an mRNA vaccine on or before April 18, 2021, will be eligible to schedule an appointment to receive their second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine at a mass immunization clinic through the provincial vaccine booking system and call centre. Some public health units using their own booking system may expand eligibility sooner.
Offering accelerated second dose appointments is happening one to four weeks ahead of schedule. Ontario says stepping up the second dose appointments is thanks to reliable and increased supply of vaccines. Ontario is expecting to receive approximately 4.7 million doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in June and approximately 3.54 million doses in July. The province has also received 193,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine.
Due to the increase in vaccine availability the province has been able to rapidly expand access to vaccines in all public health units and through various channels, including mass immunization clinics, hospital clinics, pharmacies and primary care settings, providing convenient access across Ontario.
Meanwhile, the province also says that starting on June 4, 2021, these groups are also eligible to receive their second dose appointments through pharmacies and primary care settings participating in the vaccine rollout. In addition, individuals who received their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine and are opting to receive either a second dose of AstraZeneca or a mRNA vaccine can now schedule their second dose appointment at a participating pharmacy.
The province says there are now 327 pharmacies in the Toronto, Windsor-Essex and Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington public health units offering the AstraZeneca vaccine, and nearly 450 additional pharmacies offering the Moderna vaccine.
Ontario will continue the rapid rollout of second doses for all Ontarians based on when they received their first dose, as well as on the availability of vaccines.
All Ontarians are encouraged to get vaccinated as soon as they can, and to receive their second dose as soon as they are eligible to ensure maximum protection against COVID-19.
SOURCE Government of Ontario
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