The Ontario government is finalizing plans for a province wide registration system for vaccine distribution.
Chair of Ontario's COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force retired General Rick Hillier announced the system is set to go live on March 15 when the province expects the start vaccinating seniors over the age of 80.
The system will include online registration as well as a call centre for those who do not have access to the internet.
The province has set out a timeline for seniors in the province.
- April 15 registration will open for 75+ - May 1 registration will open for 70+ - June 1 registration will open for 65+ - July 1 registration will open for 60+
This timeline is dependent on vaccine supply. The government is asking residents not to contact the call centre unless you are in the age group specified.
"If more vaccines come to Ontario we will be able to move all of those age brackets forward and including being able to pull the essential workers forward also," said General Hillier.
If the supply is available, the province intends to start vaccinating essential workers in the first week of May along with the senior populations.
Many health units have already launched or are in the process of launching local systems to get residents registered for vaccinations.
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit has indicated they will be announcing plans to start registering the 80+ population on Thursday.
The Chatham Kent Public Health Unit opened its first mass vaccination clinic this week. Organizers announced they would be vaccinating seniors 80+ beginning in March.
The Middlesex London Health Unit has not yet announced a registration system. However, it has opened two vaccination clinics with plans to open two more.
The federal government has said on multiple occasions all residents in Canada who want a vaccine will have one available to them by September. General Hillier confirmed this will be possible as long as the vaccine supply remains steady.