Anyone aged 55+ will be able to book their COVID-19 vaccine starting this Friday.
The Ontario government is updating its vaccination plans today, with the hope to start booking vaccine appointments for all adults over the age of 18 by the end of May.
As of 8 a.m. on Friday April 30th, people aged 55 and up will be able to book a vaccination appointment at a mass immunization clinic using the Ontario portal.
Officials anticipate moving the age threshold to 50 during the week of May 3rd, followed by 40 on the week of May 10.
By the week of May 24th, officials say they hope to be able to open up provincial vaccine appointments to anyone over the age of 18.
The province also hopes to start vaccinating essential workers in the first category of people “who cannot work from home” sometime next week.
Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott says starting next week there will be a more consistent vaccine supply.
Officials say they expect to receive about 800,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at the start of May, ramping up to 940,000 doses per week by the end of that month.
Officials are asking residents to be patient, saying the timeline provides opportunities to book an appointment, not necessarily get one.
Currently Niagara residents aged 60+ can book an appointment at Niagara's mass immunization clinic by using the government portal.
Those 40+ can book an appointment to receive an AstraZeneca dose at a pharmacy or dr. office.
175,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered in Niagara so far.