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Youth urged to book vaccine appointments ahead of back-to-school

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More than 70 per cent of adults over 18 have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine in Haldimand-Norfolk, according to the health unit.

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It also reports that 20 per cent of adults are now fully vaccinated and that 98 per cent of residents living in long-term care homes have received both vaccine doses. Dr. Kate Bishop-Williams, epidemiologist for the health unit, said there haven’t been any reported outbreaks in long-term care homes for several weeks.

“This speaks volumes to the success of the vaccination program locally. In reviewing the most recent fatalities, the last COVID-19 fatality in a long-term care home was in April.”

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In the community, more than 93 per cent of adults over the age of 80 are now at least partially vaccinated and 81 per cent are fully vaccinated.

The uptake of vaccine among youth and young adults has been markedly lower, said Bishop-Williams. To date, 32 per cent of those aged 12 to 17 have received at least one dose and 43 per cent of those aged 18 to 29 have received at least one dose.

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“While these numbers continue to climb, they are climbing slowly,” said Bishop-Williams. “In order to re-open schools, return to workplaces and progress toward a sense of normalcy, community uptake of the vaccine must continue to increase. Schools can be as safe as long-term care homes if the rate of vaccine coverage continues to climb.”

All adults in Ontario turning 18 or older this year are eligible to book their COVID-19 vaccine through the province’s website or individual health unit websites. Those aged 12 to 18 are also eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Youth and their households also may book appointments at dedicated youth and family clinics, which have weekend and evening hours, by calling the provincial vaccine booking line at 1-833-943-3900.

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In addition, pop-up clinics, which youth can attend, will be offered throughout the summer based on vaccine supply available.

There was one new case of COVID-19 reported by the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit on Sunday.

There are currently 35 active cases of the virus in the area.

Since the pandemic began in March 2020, there have been 2,695 people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in Haldimand-Norfolk, with 2,607 of those resulting in recovered cases.

There have been 47 deaths from COVID in the communities, as well as six people who tested positive but died from complications attributed to other illnesses.

As of Saturday, 84,142 doses of the vaccine had been administered by the health unit. There are 19,277 people who have completed their two-dose vaccine series.

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The total number of people in Haldimand-Norfolk who have received at least one dose of the vaccine is 92,971. Some people have received the vaccine outside of the health unit’s area.

Starting Monday, Ontario residents who received their first dose of Moderna or Pfizer vaccine on May 9 or earlier book or rebook their second dose appointment at a shortened interval, the health unit said on Saturday. Appointments at a mass immunization clinic can be done through the province’s booking system at covid-19.ontario.ca/book-vaccine/.

Moving up second doses is optional and people will keep their original second-dose appointments if they don’t move up their second shot.

Visit www.hnhu.org/covid19vaccine/ for more information about the vaccine rollout in Haldimand and Norfolk counties and covid-19.ontario.ca/ for more information on the rollout in Ontario.

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