Ontario Officials Are Working On A Plan To Vaccinate Kids Aged 12 & Up ASAP
"This is wonderful news," says Health Minister Christine Elliott.
On Wednesday, May 5, Health Canada approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children 12 to 15 years old, and Ontario is now working on a plan to make vaccine doses available to them as quickly as possible.
Ontario's Health Minister Christine Elliott called the development "wonderful news" during a news conference on Wednesday and said that discussions are already underway to roll out the vaccine to kids in this age group.
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"Absolutely this is being planned," said Elliott. "We've already been in conversations, discussions with the minister of education to make sure that we can start as soon as possible, and fortunately with the increased supply of [both Moderna and Pfizer] vaccines, we wish to start that as soon as possible and are actively working through that right now."
Health Canada's chief medical adviser, Dr. Supriya Sharma, said on Wednesday that two doses of the Pfizer vaccine are safe and effective for children 12 and older.
The vaccine rollout in Ontario continues to move forward. On May 5, the province announced that all adults living in the Peel region who were born in 2003 or earlier are now eligible to book a vaccine appointment.