Targeted vaccine clinic at the WFCU Centre in Windsor, March 3, 2021. (Photo by Maureen Revait) Targeted vaccine clinic at the WFCU Centre in Windsor, March 3, 2021. (Photo by Maureen Revait)
Windsor

Windsor Essex mass vaccine sites open for 40+

The Windsor Essex County Health Unit booking system for mass vaccinations is now open for all residents 40 years and older.

The provincial government announced it would be opening mass vaccinations to the 40 plus population on Thursday and to people in Group 2 of essential workers on Tuesday. However, Medical Officer of Health Dr. Wajid Ahmed said the local system may not be in line with the provincial system come Tuesday.

“Our rollout is based on our local priority and local situation that we are dealing with. We try to align ourselves as best as possible with the province,” said Dr. Ahmed. “This is all based on supply, based on our local situation. We plan to align, I just don’t know when. I just don’t want to set up that expectation that tomorrow [Tuesday] is the day for Group 2 to start registering.”

To date, 52.4 per cent of adults in Windsor Essex have received at least one dose of a vaccine. The region is expected to administer 22,000 doses this week at mass vaccination sites. For the week of May 17, the region is expected to receive 17,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine. The Moderna vaccine is also being administered at select pharmacies in Windsor Essex hotspots.

As part of the vaccination rollout, the health unit has given over 4,000 employees at 132 farms and greenhouses in the county their first dose of a vaccine. The health unit will continue to work with farms to administer doses to new arrivals however many will receive their first dose before arriving in Windsor-Essex.

On Monday, the health unit reported 38 new cases of COVID-19 in the region. Among the new cases, 15 are considered close contacts of previously confirmed infections, nine are community-acquired, and one is outbreak related. Staff continue to investigate 13 of the new cases.

There are now 367 people with active infections and of those 173 have been identified as variants of concern.

The health unit also reported an additional death in the region due to COVID-19. A man in his 80s passed away after contracting the virus. There have now been 417 deaths in Windsor-Essex connected to COVID-19. Local hospitals are treating 22 people from Windsor-Essex with COVID-19 and three are in the intensive care unit. Another 36 patients have been transferred to Windsor Regional Hospital from other regions in Ontario.

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