Province Continuing to Expand Second Dose Coverage in Delta Hot Spots

June 25, 2021
Ministry of Health

TORONTO — With more than 76 per cent of Ontarian adults having received a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and over 30 per cent fully immunized, Ontario is accelerating second dose eligibility to all individuals aged 18 and over across the province.

Starting Monday, June 28, 2021 at 8:00 a.m., all Ontarians aged 18 and over who received their first dose of an mRNA vaccine will be eligible to book an appointment to receive their second ahead of schedule. This will accelerate second dose eligibility for approximately 1.5 million Ontarians.

“Ontario’s vaccine rollout continues to pick up speed, allowing us to provide more second doses ahead of schedule while supporting our communities most at risk,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “All vaccines provide strong protection against COVID-19 and the Delta variant, and I encourage everyone to book your second dose appointment as soon as possible.”

The province continues to take action to further protect Delta hot spots by accelerating second doses and expanding second dose coverage. Between June 14 and June 23, 2021 more than 1,090,000 doses have been administered to people living in Delta hot spot public health units, and a total of 230,000 additional doses were provided to Delta hot spots for the week of June 21st, 2021.

Starting this week, provincially supported mobile teams have begun returning to community and workplace sites to support second dose clinics in Durham, Halton, Hamilton, Toronto, Peel and York region hot spots. Two pop-up teams and additional vaccination staff are also helping to accelerate first and second doses in priority communities in Waterloo.

“Thanks to our public health units, pharmacy and primary care practitioners, as well as employers in hot spot regions, we continue to make strides to increase vaccinations and get more Ontarians fully immunized,” said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones. “Vaccines remain the best defence against COVID-19 and its variants and we encourage everyone to get their first or second dose at their earliest opportunity to keep themselves, their families and our communities safe.”

Beginning Saturday, June 26, 2021 at 8:00 a.m., youth aged 12 to 17 who live in a Delta hot spot (Durham, Halton, Hamilton, Peel, Porcupine, Simcoe-Muskoka, Toronto, Waterloo, Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph and York public health units) are eligible to book an accelerated second dose appointment through the provincial booking system, directly through public health units that use their own booking system, and through participating pharmacies.

In all other public health units, second doses for youth remain as they are currently booked at this time. To support a safe return to school in September, the province will be looking to accelerate youth second dose bookings following individuals aged 18 and over.

To ensure maximum protection against COVID-19 and the Delta variant, Ontarians are encouraged to get vaccinated as soon as they can and to receive their second dose within the recommended interval.