Today, Mayor John Tory announced the City of Toronto and vaccination partners have now administered at least a first dose of vaccine to 40 per cent of eligible Torontonians. Team Toronto was able to reach this preliminary goal thanks to a vaccination network that includes the City, Toronto Public Health, hospitals, pharmacies, Ontario Health Teams, Local Health Integration Networks, community clinics, primary care physicians and community groups.
In total, more than 1,016,400 people in Toronto from eligible groups have now received at least their first dose of vaccine. Approximately 20 per cent of doses have been administered by City-operated immunization clinics, with 80 per cent of doses administered by the Team Toronto network of more than 300 vaccination partners.
Within the 40 per cent of adults vaccinated are the thousands of people who have received doses through the Team Toronto Sprint Strategy that is focused on getting people vaccinated in hot spot postal codes. The City and vaccination partners are seeing double digit increases in vaccination rates in the hottest hot spots – good progress with more to be done. Across the 13 postal codes prioritized in the strategy, 36.6 per cent of adults have now received a first dose of vaccine.
The full list of eligible groups with information on how to register for appointments is available on the City’s COVID-19: How to Get Vaccinated webpage. Currently, eligible groups include:
Keeping this momentum, in response to increased vaccine supply from the Province of Ontario and Government of Canada, more than 80,000 new appointments have been added for City-operated immunization clinics, including 24,000 appointments for the week of May 3 to 9. Available appointments can be booked by eligible people through toronto.ca/covid-19 or by calling the provincial Booking Line at 1-833-943-3900.
Getting as many people as possible vaccinated will stop future waves of COVID-19 and protect our healthcare system and community. The proportion of Torontonians required be immune to COVID-19 to reach herd immunity – a state where a significant proportion of the population is immune to the virus, leaving few susceptible people who can be infected and transmit COVID-19 – depends on a number of factors, including vaccination rate and the presence of variants of concern. Public Health Ontario research found that 53 per cent to 84 per cent of the population will need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to achieve herd immunity and prevent the continued transmission of the virus. To reach this state where COVID-19 transmission is limited, saving lives and allowing public health restrictions to be eased, everyone who is eligible to be vaccinated is urged to make an appointment as soon as possible.
For the current wave of COVID-19 in Toronto, amplified by variants of concern, staying home except when absolutely necessary and following public health guidance is the best way to keep everyone safe. Please review the City’s COVID-19: Guide for Residents for public health guidance and information on what is and is not permitted under provincial regulations and City bylaws.
Quotes:
“Getting 40 per cent of eligible adults in Toronto their first dose is encouraging news for our city, our province and our country as we work to get everyone vaccinated as soon as possible. We’re already working ahead to the next milestone. And that’s where we have to focus – on moving that 40 per cent number up as quickly as we can and starting to focus on second doses which will once again put the focus on supply. Thank you to everyone who is working across our city to get residents vaccinated in hospitals, in mobile and pop-up clinics, in pharmacies and doctors’ office, and in our city vaccine sites – your efforts are paying off so please know that we are all grateful for your work. We know there are more vaccine doses on the way this month, we know more and more people will be eligible over the coming weeks, and we know that Team Toronto will be ramping up our efforts to get hundreds of thousands of more residents vaccinated as quickly as possible. So while we take a minute to mark the 40 per cent goal being met early, I want you to know that we won’t rest until everyone has received their vaccination, the lockdown is lifted, and we truly put this pandemic behind us.”
– Mayor John Tory
“More than 40 per cent of adults in Toronto will have received their first dose by the end of day today. Over 1.1 million vaccine doses have now been administered in Toronto. And vaccination rates in targeted high-risk neighbourhoods are significantly improving. These are important steps forward, but there’s still so much more to do. Success will be when every resident, in every corner of our city, has access to the vaccine. That’s the goal. That’s what we must keeping working towards.”
– Councillor Joe Cressy (Spadina-Fort York), Chair of the Toronto Board of Health
“While we have work ahead of us, it is important to acknowledge this milestone in the largest immunization campaign ever undertaken. Toronto Public Health, our hospital partners, and our community partners are all collaborating to deliver the doses we have to best advantage, in the most efficient way possible.”
– Dr. Eileen de Villa, Medical Officer of Health
“This accomplishment is testament to the tireless effort of the Team Toronto vaccination network and one step closer to achieving the City’s Immunization Task Force goal of vaccinating as many people as possible, as quickly as possible. I continue to urge eligible residents to book their vaccination appointment today and help us beat COVID-19.”
– Chief Matthew Pegg, General Manager of the Office of Emergency Management
Toronto is home to more than 2.9 million people whose diversity and experiences make this great city Canada’s leading economic engine and one of the world’s most diverse and livable cities. As the fourth largest city in North America, Toronto is a global leader in technology, finance, film, music, culture and innovation, and consistently places at the top of international rankings due to investments championed by its government, residents and businesses. For more information visit the City’s website or follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.