Vaccine Rollout Accelerates
Expanding Ontario’s booking system to individuals aged 75 and older
With over 50 per cent of Ontario residents aged 80 and over having received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, the Ontario government is expanding appointments through its online booking system to individuals aged 75 and over, effective Monday, March 22, 2021, ahead of schedule.
Since of the launch of Ontario’s online booking tool and call centre on March 15, more than 239,000 appointments have been scheduled for the first and second doses through the provincial booking system.
If an individual is turning 75 or older in 2021 and does not live in a congregate care setting, they can schedule a vaccine appointment by visiting Ontario.ca/bookvaccine, or by calling the Provincial Vaccine Information Line number at 1-888-999-6488. The Provincial Vaccine Information Line is open Monday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and is capable of providing assistance in 300 languages.
Everyone is eager to receive the vaccine, but those not yet eligible for a vaccine are being asked to avoid accessing the booking system or calling the service desk to allow those that are eligible the opportunity to book an appointment.
Thanks to the efforts of our health care partners and the efficiency of our booking system, Ontario has been able to schedule more appointments and vaccinate more people quickly and conveniently.
In alignment with NACI’s latest recommendation on the use of the AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD vaccine and Ontario’s Ethical Framework, as of March 22, 2021, participating pharmacies and primary care settings will offer vaccination appointments to individuals aged 60 and over.
The province continues to expand the delivery channels available to administer COVID-19 vaccines, with another approximately 350 pharmacies to be brought on board across the province in the next two weeks bringing the total to approximately 700 locations. Details on additional locations and the application process for pharmacy participation will be shared in the coming days.
Ontario’s vaccine rollout is well underway, with Phase One nearing completion with over 1.4 million vaccine doses administered. Over 120 mass immunization clinics are planned to open this month in addition to sites already open, increasing the province’s vaccine administration capacity to over 150,000 doses per day, dependent on supply from the federal government.