Ontario to open COVID-19 vaccine booking portal for kids on Tuesday

Children aged five to 11 will be eligible to book their appointment to receive the COVID-19 vaccine beginning Tuesday.

Health Canada approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children in that age group on Friday.

The vaccine is a lower dose than the amount given to individuals aged 12 and over. It will be administered in a two-dose series with eight weeks between first and second doses.

Last week, Health Canada said the clinical trial of the paediatric dose showed that the immune response in children five to 11 years of age was comparable to the immune response in people 16 to 25 years of age. The vaccine was 90.7 per cent effective at preventing COVID-19 in children five to 11 years of age and no serious side effects were identified.

“The approval of the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11 is exciting news for families and represents a bright light at the end of the tunnel,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health in a news release. “Offering the protection of the vaccine to children aged five to 11 is a significant milestone in Ontario’s fight against COVID-19 in advance of the holiday season. We continue to encourage all Ontarians to roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated to protect themselves, their families and their communities.”

The first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines for children arrived in Canada Sunday evening at Hamilton International Airport.

Ontario is expected to receive 1,076,000 doses of the paediatric Pfizer vaccine from the federal government, which will then be immediately distributed to public health units, pharmacies, and primary care settings across the province.

“Receiving vaccine approval for children aged five to 11 is another critical milestone in our vaccination efforts,” said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones in a news release. “Across the province, Ontarians have rolled up their sleeves to get vaccinated to stop the spread of COVID-19 and now parents can take comfort in knowing their children will also have the opportunity to be protected.”

READ MORE: First batch of COVID-19 vaccines for Canadian kids arrive at Hamilton airport

The province says bookings can be made through Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccination portal and contact centre, directly through public health units using their own booking system, participating pharmacies which individuals can find on Ontario’s website using the pharmacy locator, and select primary care providers.

Appointments across the province are expected to begin as early as November 25.

The province has also been working with Health Canada’s First Nations and Inuit Health Branch to launch Operation Remote Immunity 3.0 to support the administration of COVID-19 vaccines for children aged five to 11 in Northern and Remote First Nation communities, as well as booster doses to eligible populations. The program will run until March 2022.