Another vaccination record broken in Ottawa as second doses surge

OTTAWA -

Ottawa Public Health says another record for COVID-19 vaccinations in Ottawa has been broken, with more than 130,000 doses administered last week.

OPH says 131,223 doses were administered in Ottawa between June 27 and July 3, surpassing the 127,875 doses administered the week prior.

Everyone in Ontario 12 and older is now eligible to book accelerated second dose appointments. Last week, 108,626 second doses were administered in community clinics, pharmacies, primary care clinics and local pop-up clinics.

Accelerated bookings for youth aged 12 to 17 opened Monday.

14-year-old Brooke Camlioglu will be receiving her second dose sooner, in mid-July instead of October, thanks to her mom booking an earlier shot at 8 a.m. Monday.

"I get to see my friends again, stuff like that," she said of soon being fully vaccinated, "participate in sports and, hopefully, have a normal school year."

Ramzi Hawa booked his second dose at a local pop-up clinic.

"I’m ready to resume normal life. I can’t wait for that, to get back to normal, be able to see friends and family again. Exciting times!"

Dr. Raywat Deonandan, epidemiologist and associate professor at the University of Ottawa, says getting the youths 12 and older vaccinated helps ease pressure on the health-care system.

"With those over 12 getting immunized quickly, that allows us to shift our public health assets to those under 12. That’s not a small thing because our resources are finite. Now we can focus on things like contact tracing; test, trace and isolate; symptom checks, all on that one demographic."

In just under a month, second dose coverage for the population of Ottawa jumped from seven per cent to 36 per cent, while the amount of people in Ottawa with at least one dose rose from 56 per cent to 70 per cent.

Last week, Ottawa's medical officer of health, Dr. Vera Etches, said that vaccinations appeared to be lagging among people aged 18 to 39. While the percentage of residents in that age group with one dose was just 67 per cent, the lowest among all age categories in Ottawa, the raw numbers of people 18 to 29 and 30 to 39 with first doses were high.

As of Monday, OPH says 125,377 people 18 to 29 have at least one dose and 109,939 people 30 to 39 have one dose. That's an increase of 4,963 people 18 to 29 with first doses and 3,474 people 30 to 39 since last Monday.

By comparison, 3,052 residents 12 to 17 got their first shot last week, while 3,836 people 40 and older got first shots. Estimates suggest there are more than 320,000 people 18 to 39 years old in Ottawa.

QUICK STATS

• Ottawa residents with at least one dose: 737,853
• Ottawa residents with two doses: 382,903
• Percent of population 12 and older with at least one dose: 80 per cent
• Percent of population 12 and older with two doses: 41 per cent
• Percent of total population with at least one dose: 70 per cent
• Percent of total population with two doses: 36 per cent

VACCINATION COVERAGE BY AGE FOR OTTAWA RESIDENTS WITH AT LEAST ONE DOSE

• 12-17: 77 per cent (50,916 people)
• 18-29: 67 per cent (125,377 people)
• 30-39: 69 per cent (109,939 people)
• 40-49: 82 per cent (110,922 people)
• 50-59: 88 per cent (122,582 people)
• 60-69: 89 per cent (105,474 people)
• 70-79: 93 per cent (70,351 people)
• 80 and older: 94 per cent (39,795 people)
• Unknown age: 2,499 people

VACCINATION COVERAGE BY AGE FOR OTTAWA RESIDENTS WITH TWO DOSES

• 12-17: 4 per cent (2,444people)
• 18-29: 21 per cent (38,925 people)
• 30-39: 26 per cent (41,558 people)
• 40-49: 38 per cent (51,237 people)
• 50-59: 53 per cent (74,648 people)
• 60-69: 67 per cent (80,130 people)
• 70-79: 77 per cent (58,014 people)
• 80 and older: 80 per cent (33,779 people)
• Unknown age: 2,168 people