By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
The Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ridge District Health Unit announces the reopening of mass-immunization clinics to handle the expanded eligibility for third doses of the COVID-19 vaccine that the province has announced.
The announcement specified the groups that are eligible for that third dose:
- Those aged 70 and older (born in 1951 or earlier)
- First Nation, Metis and Inuit adults and their non-Indigenous household members
- Anyone who received two doses of the non-mRNA Astra Zeneca/COVIDSHIELD COVID-19 vaccine or a single dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine
- Health-care workers and designated essential caregivers in such congregate settings as long-term-care homes and retirement homes – and designated caregivers)
Eligibility for these groups begins at six months (or 168 days) after the time they got their second dose. This information can be found on the vaccination receipts issued at the time of inoculation, and guidelines can be found at www.hkpr.on.ca
Previously, the government had called for all residents of long-term care, First Nation elder-care lodges and retirement homes to get a third dose, as well as specified groups of immunocompromised people and others receiving immune system-suppressing drugs.
To meet this demand – and in anticipation of the provincial announcement that children aged five to 11 are eligible – the health unit is once again opening doors to mass-immunization clinics at five locations.
In Northumberland County, the clinics will be set up at the Cobourg Community Centre and at the Keeler Centre in Colborne. Other clinics are at the Fenelon Falls Community Centre, Lindsay Exhibition Centre and Minden Community Centre. Dates and times vary, and can be found on the health unit website.
As well, seven high schools will be used as vaccination sites on weekends,. In Northumberland, Cobourg Collegiate Institute, Campbellford District High School and East Northumberland Secondary School in Brighton will be used as sites. The others are Haliburton Highlands Secondary School, Fenelon Falls High School, Lindsay Collegiate and Vocational Institute and I.E. Weldon Secondary School, also in Lindsay.
The health unit is moving back to having residents book appointments through the provincial booking system, which will go live at 8 a.m. Saturday, Nov 6, and can be accessed at https://covid19.ontariohealth.ca/ or by calling the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-888-943-3900 (or TTY for those with hearing or speech impairments at 1-866-797-0007).
For those who do not wish to book an appointment, the health unit will accept walk-ins for the last hour of each clinic – 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
“As we are moving into cooler winter weather, we don’t want to see our older residents have to wait in long lines outside of our clinics for their vaccination,” Medical Officer of Health Dr. Natalie Bocking said in the announcement.
“Moving back to using the provincial booking system will allow people to set an appointment that works for them to help minimize the time people need to spend at our clinics.”
Eligible residents can also check with their primary health-care provider or local pharmacy to check and see if they are providing third doses of vaccine.
For more details about third-dose eligibility, the health unit’s mass-immunization clinics or the provincial booking system, visit www.hkpr.on.ca
