On the second day after Canada officially reported that 50% of its residents were partially immunized against COVID-19, more provinces stepped up their efforts to include young people in the vaccinated population.

On Sunday, Ontario became the latest province to open vaccination appointments to children 12 years and older through the province’s reservation system.

The province stated that those who want to book can book through provincial online portals or call centers, as well as through pharmacies that offer Pfizer-BioNTech injections.

Although some young people used to be able to obtain vaccines through pop-up clinics or operations led by regional public health authorities, Sunday’s news has made access more equitable across the province.

In Quebec, there are long lines outside the walk-in vaccine center in Montreal, open to people aged 12 to 17 on weekends.

The province will officially open its reservation system to teenagers 12 years and older on Tuesday, but a local health department spokesperson said that officials at the clinic on the west side of the city center decided not to refuse the teenagers who were there.

As of 2 pm, although 500 bottles had been ordered to meet the demand, the clinic still reported that it could not provide enough doses that day.

At the same time that the national immunization campaign is accelerating, efforts to target young residents have also begun.

Canada’s chief public health officer wrote on Twitter on Sunday that between May 9 and May 15, more than 2.5 million Canadians received the CoVID-19 vaccine. More than 19 million Canadians, or half of the country’s population, have received the vaccine for at least the first time. As of Saturday, the vaccination volume was 5%, but only two injections were fully immunized to less than 5%.

Several other provinces have expanded vaccine qualifications to 12 or more provinces, including Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta.

As provinces work to vaccinate young people, Saskatchewan announced on Sunday that it is also stepping up its efforts to get older people to get a second dose.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority reported that as of Monday, anyone over the age of 80 can order a second dose of the vaccine, as well as cancer and organ transplant patients and patients who were vaccinated on or before March 1. .

Nationwide, new COVID-19 cases continue to trend below the third wave peak reported in mid-April, although the number of cases in some provinces is still high.

Manitoba reported 461 new COVID-19 infections and another death because the five-day test positive rate is still high, 14.5% in the province and 16.7% in Winnipeg.

Newfoundland and Labrador reported 23 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases, a significant increase from the 4 cases reported a day ago. The province is currently fighting a cluster in the Central Health District.

Provincial public health authorities advise against unnecessary travel in and out of parts of the province between Lewisport and Somerford to limit further spread.

Nova Scotia reported 74 new cases and died in the 78th and 79th deaths of the epidemic, which Prime Minister Iain Rankin called the province’s “tragic weekend.”

He said in a statement: “The hearts of all Nova Scotia people are with family and friends who are grieving and bereaved.”

“Please make a decision this weekend that will help stop the spread of this virus, so that we can prevent more Nova Scotia people from suffering this kind of suffering.”

The chief medical officer of the province’s Ministry of Health said that Nova Scotia has reported five deaths in the past three days, a statistic that has been hit hard in this small, closely linked province.

The situation in Ontario and Quebec seems more promising, where the number of cases has slowly declined from the third wave high.

Ontario has reported fewer than 1,700 new cases, while Quebec has fallen below 500 for the first time since September last year.

Saskatchewan reported 116 new cases on Sunday and one death, while New Brunswick reported 14 new cases.

At the same time, Alberta added 563 cases and another 6 deaths.

The Canadian News Agency report was first published on May 23, 2021