Yukon to receive 16,100 vaccine doses by end of month

Yukon will receive 16,100 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the month, it said in a Friday night news release. 

"The mass clinic for all eligible Yukoners will open in Whitehorse as soon as possible following the arrival of these doses," reads a statement attributed to Premier Sandy Silver and Health and Social Services Minister Pauline Frost.

It said the territory's planning team is already at work "to redesign clinic dates and delivery schedules so we can open up the Whitehorse clinic to all residents."

It said it would share information about when Yukoners can book appointments "shortly."

Last week, at the territory's weekly COVID-19 news conference, the premier said that public vaccination clinics planned for this week in Whitehorse had to be postponed because of vaccine supply issues. 

Yukon's third shipment of the vaccine, which arrived last weekend, was 2,700 doses smaller — or 37 per cent — than was originally expected. 

The government has said that anybody who has already received an initial dose of the vaccine will be assured of a second dose to ensure full protection.

All rural communities visited

Earlier this week, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Brendan Hanley said that as of Wednesday, 10,604 people in Yukon had received their first dose of vaccine, and 830 people had received their second dose. 

The territory has been prioritizing immunizations for long term care residents and staff, and those people were among the first in Yukon to receive their second doses, last week.

The statement says all eligible people in long-term care homes had received their full immunizations.

"Homebound people in Whitehorse have also received their second dose and are now fully vaccinated," it added.

In addition, the territory's mobile vaccine teams have visited all rural communities and are starting to go back to them to offer second doses to those who have been vaccinated, and first doses to those who missed the first clinic.

As of late Friday afternoon, the territory had two cases one confirmed and another presumptive. They are the first new cases in Yukon in more than a month. 

There have been 71 confirmed cases in Yukon so far, and one presumptive case. Sixty-nine people have recovered and one person has died.