Armed with a directive from Ontario's Medical Officer of Health offering third doses of COVID vaccines for elderly and vulnerable populations, the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit aims to have the task complete by mid-September.
The province's top doc announced last week third dose vaccines would be available for high-risk groups.
Dr. Charles Gardner, medical officer of health for the Simcoe-Muskoka region confirmed the health unit is reaching out to long-term care homes and retirement communities to arrange third doses for residents.
Those who are eligible because of medical conditions such as organ transplant recipients, those on immunosuppressant drugs, and/or those with blood cancers, can get a third dose through their primary care provider. If this isn't possible, they can take a doctor's note to the health unit's vaccine clinic on Sperling Drive in Barrie to get their third dose.
Gardner reported there will also be school-based vaccine clinics in the region's high schools.
"We won't be able to put one in every high school, but there will be at least one in each community," he said Tuesday during a media briefing.
The plan is to have high school clinics from Sept. 9 to 17. The tentative schedule would see vaccines given to students and staff from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and then have the clinic open to the community and to families and students from surrounding elementary schools from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
According to the health unit website, of August 23, 2021, over 429,550 (or 71 per cent) of Simcoe-Muskoka’s residents have received at least one dose of vaccine, with 386,728 (or 64 per cent) of these individuals also receiving their second dose.
The lowest rate of vaccine coverage is in the youngest population groups. Between 54 and 59 per cent of youth and young adults between 12 and 29 years old is fully vaccinated. This was the last age group to become eligible for the COVID vaccine.
Coverage rates for the fully vaccinated increase to about 63 per cent for people in their 30s, 70 per cent for people in their 40s, 75 per cent for people in their 50s, 88 per cent for people in their 60s, 90 per cent for people in their 70s, and 93 per cent for people aged 80 and above.
For the current schedule of pop-up vaccine clinics in Simcoe-Muskoka, click here. For clinics accepting walk-ins, click here. And for general vaccine information and booking options, click here.
