Government of Ontario extends vaccine booking eligibility to individuals aged 18 and over
As the pace of Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout continues to accelerate with 2.2 million doses scheduled to arrive this week, the government is extending booking eligibility at mass immunization clinics to individuals aged 18 and over. This high number of doses is due to an early delivery of the week of May 24 shipment, to accommodate the long weekend, and is an opportunity for the province to offer an appointment to receive the vaccine to more Ontarians ahead of schedule.
As of 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 18, 2021, individuals aged 18 and over in 2021 across Ontario will be eligible to book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment through the provincial booking system and call centre, or directly through public health units that use their own booking system. On May 3, 2021, the government expanded booking eligibility to those 18 and over in 2021 and who live in one of the 114 hot spot communities.
New vaccination clinic dates have been added in Niagara.
Government of Canada launches new “Ripple Effect” advertising campaign to encourage COVID-19 vaccination
The latest tracking polling shows that the number of people who have already had a shot or who will take one as soon as it is available to them is up from previous weeks and now stands at over 70%. More and more of our family members, friends, and neighbours in communities across Canada are getting vaccinated or say they intend to. This momentum to get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible needs to continue. It is important that people know that their choice to vaccinate plays an important part in keeping them and their loved ones healthy.
The campaign uses the concept of a ripple effect to underscore how one small, individual action can greatly influence outcomes for everyone. Getting vaccinated will help reduce infection rates, ease pressure on the health system and create the conditions that will allow us to get back to important social, economic and recreational activities.
Statement from the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 1,328,582 cases of COVID-19, including 70,341 active cases and 24,948 deaths reported in Canada; these cumulative numbers tell us about the overall burden of COVID-19 illness to date. They also tell us, together with results of serological studies, that a large majority of Canadians remain susceptible to COVID-19. Multiple safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines, with unique advantages, are authorised for use in Canada. As vaccine delivery continues to ramp up, there is increasing optimism that widespread and lasting immunity can be achieved through COVID-19 vaccination.
However, as COVID-19 activity remains elevated in many jurisdictions, strong public health measures must be sustained where COVID-19 is circulating and individual precautions are important everywhere to drive infection rates down to low and manageable levels, while getting our vaccination rates as high as possible. While the latest national-level data show continued declines in disease activity, daily case counts remain very high.
Reading Recommendations
Housing market moderates in April compared to March
Canadian Real Estate Association
Home sales recorded over Canadian MLS® Systems fell by 12.5% in April 2021 compared to the highest level ever recorded in March. (Chart A)
Month-over-month declines in sales activity were observed in close to 85% of all local markets, including virtually all of B.C. and Ontario.
In contrast, actual (not seasonally adjusted) sales activity posted a 256% year-over-year gain in April, reflecting the chasm between the best April ever in 2021 and the worst ever last year.
Commodities send loonie soaring, creating quandary for Canada
Bloomberg News
The broad rally in raw materials that’s lifted prices for crops, energy and metals is a bonanza for Canada’s economy and a major challenge for the nation’s policy makers, who are under pressure to ensure that everybody benefits.
Should the commodities boom hold, it would represent a windfall for the resource-rich nation endowed with oil, natural gas and vast lands to mine and farm. Export receipts are already at near a record and poised to go higher. The value of lumber shipments alone nearly doubled in the first quarter.
Niagara COVID status tracker (May 8)
Niagara’s most up-to-date COVID statistics, measured against the targets for the various stages of the Ontario COVID-19 Response Framework, are presented below. This does not predict government policy, but is offered to give you an idea of where Niagara is situated and how likely a relaxation (or further restrictions) may be. These data are the most recent published by Niagara Region. The Grey-Lockdown level does not have its own metrics, but is triggered when the COVID-specific measurements in a Red-Control region have continued to deteriorate.
The Province of Ontario is currently under a stay-at-home order. The COVID-19 Response Framework does not apply during this order. Click here to review the restrictions currently in place.
▲: Metric has increased since last published measurement
▼: Metric has decreased since last published measurement
— : Metric has not changed since last published measurement
| December 18 | December 25 | January 1 | January 8 | January 15 | January 22 | January 29 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive number | 1.4 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.9 |
| New cases per 100,000 | 101.2 | 267.3 | 469.8 | 575.8 | 507.1 | 295.5 | 250.6 |
| New cases per day (not including outbreaks) | 60.7 | 178.7 | 311.7 | 376.9 | 325.4 | 182.7 | 145.7 |
| Percent of hospital beds occupied | 97% | 95.2% | 98.2% | 103.2% | 104.5% | 103.6% | 106% |
| Percent of intensive care beds occupied | 78.8% | 77.3% | 87.9% | 87.9% | 90.9% | 89.4% | 93.9% |
| Percentage of positive tests | 6.1% | 15.6% | 28.1% | 28.6% | 26.6% | 21.2% | 16.2% |
Definitions:
- Weekly Incidence Rate: the number of new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people per week
- Percent Positivity: the number of positive COVID-19 tests as a percentage of all COVID-19 tests performed
- Rt: the reproductive rate, or the number of people infected by each case of the virus
Niagara COVID vaccination tracker (May 17)
Niagara’s most up-to-date vaccination numbers are presented below, along with comparison data from Ontario, Canada, and G7 countries.
Total doses administered in Niagara: 227,637
Total doses administered in Niagara since yesterday: 3,928
| Percentage of population with one dose | Percentage of population fully vaccinated | |
|---|---|---|
| Niagara | 82.7% | 78.2% |
| Ontario | 84.6% | 79.1% |
| Canada | 84.7% | 78.6% |
| United States | 75% | 64% |
| United Kingdom | 78% | 72% |
| Germany | 76% | 74% |
| France | 80% | 77% |
| Italy | 83% | 76% |
| Japan | 80% | 79% |
| World | 63% | 53% |
Data are drawn from Niagara Region, the Government of Ontario, and Oxford University’s Our World in Data project.
