5 things to know about the COVID-19 vaccination plan for Windsor-Essex

After a year unlike any other, mass immunization for COVID-19 could eventually bring about a return to normal life.

But with hundreds of thousands of doses needed in Windsor-Essex alone to offer protection from the virus, officials say it will be a long road to get there. 

Efforts to vaccinate the local population kicked off in December. But it will be many months before the shot is widely available amid a global scramble to secure vaccines, according to political leaders and health officials.

Earlier this week, public health officials presented their plan on how the shots will be administered in Windsor-Essex. 

Here's what you need to know:

Who can get the vaccine?

Given the very limited supply of the vaccine, shots are being administered according to risk and vulnerability to the virus.

The vaccination plan is rolling out in three stages, and the first phase is well underway.

Right now, the following groups are eligible:

• Residents, staff and essential caregivers at long-term care and retirement homes.
• Some health-care workers (depending on their risk and how essential they are).

The next priorities are:

• Adults receiving chronic home-care (part of Phase 1).
• People over 75 years old (Phase 2).
• People 60 to 75 years old (Phase 2).
• Essential workers (Phase 2).
• Communities at risk (Phase 2).

For anyone not fitting into these categories, vaccination will go ahead in the third phase of the rollout. The province expects that phase to start in August.

The provincial criteria is based on advice from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization and the provincial vaccination task force.

Locally, the health unit has struck a prioritization committee intended to work within the provincial guidelines and ensure the vaccine is rolling out in an ethical manner.

When can I get the vaccine?

The three phases of the rollout are based on the level of supply. Phase 2 is expected to run between March and July. Phase 3, when the vaccine will be available to the general public, is expected to start in August.

Recent announcements from Pfizer and Moderna have put a question mark around exactly how much vaccine the province will receive in the coming weeks, but over 17 million doses are expected to arrive in the province by July, according to the provincial government's vaccine website.

How many people have gotten the shot?

According to data presented by the health unit on Monday, over 15,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Windsor-Essex so far.

For the Moderna vaccine, 5,296 doses have been administered, while 9,858 shots of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine have been given.

Both vaccines require two doses several weeks apart to be effective.

Across the province, 72,057 people have been fully vaccinated.

Where will vaccines be administered?

The Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine was administered for the first time in Windsor-Essex on Dec. 22 at the St. Clair College Sportsplex at a clinic run by Windsor Regional Hospital.

Employees of long-term care homes, and some other health care workers, were eligible to receive the shot from the hospital.

The local public health unit is overseeing the rollout of the Moderna vaccine. Vaccinations began on New Year's Day at long-term care homes, followed by retirement homes.

Residents, as well as staff and essential caregivers, were eligible. The health unit says the majority of that population has received a first dose, though some residents who want the vaccine have yet to receive it because they had COVID-19 on vaccination day.

As additional supply becomes available, the vaccine is expected to be offered at more locations. 

According to the health unit's plan, in Stage 2, primary caregivers (family doctors) and pharmacists will be able to offer the vaccine if they meet requirements.

The health unit says mobile teams will also be administering the vaccine. 

There will be mass immunization clinics set up with the assistance of municipalities, starting with high-priority groups such as essential workers and those working on farms.

Then, in Phase 3, the clinics will open to the general public.

Which vaccines are available?

The Moderna and Pfizer-BioNtech vaccines are the only products approved by Health Canada so far.

The second dose of Moderna is recommended 28 days later while the Pfizer vaccine is recommended at 21 days, though officials have said second doses can be delayed for a period of time if necessary.

There have been issues with the supply of both products, leaving Canada with fewer shots than promised in the short term. Starting in January, Pfizer shipments were expected to drop by 50 per cent over four weeks, though the company says it's still on track to deliver on its quarterly commitment. 

Windsor Regional Hospital says it has stopped administering the first doses of that vaccine, and is delaying second shots as a result of the shortage.

On Friday, Moderna announced it was reducing deliveries to Canada by 20 to 25 per cent in February.

In Windsor-Essex, officials say they still expect to receive a planned delivery of shots this week to continue second doses at seniors' homes. 

Meanwhile, the federal government has purchased hundreds of millions of doses of other vaccines that have not yet been approved.

And there are plans to sidestep international supply chains and produce a vaccine here in Canada.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that a vaccine from U.S.-based Novavax would be manufactured at a National Research Council facility in Montreal pending approval.