Doctors, nurses, long-term care staff, and first responders will soon start getting their second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Niagara Health has started scheduling second-shot appointments for approximately 13,000 high-risk healthcare workers.
The effort comes as provincial officials agreed to shorten the second-dose interval for some key groups.
Niagara Health representatives say the first-dose appointments for community members will not be impacted by the change.
According to the latest numbers from Niagara Region Public Health 43.9 percent of Niagara residents have now received at least one dose, with 2.8 percent completing the full vaccination series.
Niagara Health has contributed 106,700 shots to the total, Public Health is responsible for almost 71,000, pharmacies have administered 20,500 vaccines, and primary care settings add another 4,800.
Ontario is also expected to lower the age eligibility to vaccines to as low as 30 sometime this week, but a firm date has not yet been announced.