Ontario parents expressed excitement and relief on Thursday after the province announced that COVID-19 vaccinations for infants and preschoolers could start being booked late next week.
Pediatric vaccine bookings for children aged six months to under five years will open at 8 a.m next Thursday, with appointments available through the province's online portal, public health units that use their own booking systems, pharmacies and Indigenous-led clinics, as well as some primary care providers and pediatricians.
Karen Gilbert said she was thrilled about the announcement, noting her entire family is vaccinated except "the one that needed it the most" – her four-year-old son Jasper, who has complex care needs.
"This is fantastic news and I will be one of the first ones hopefully lining up to get it," the Ottawa-area mother said by phone. "I couldn't be happier."
The family has put a "wall of protection" around Jasper for the last two years, but Gilbert said it’s been challenging to skip out on birthday parties and visitors.
"Keeping him safe and protected is super important," she said.
Health Minister Sylvia Jones said the lower-dose Moderna shot will give young family members protection against COVID-19. She encouraged parents with questions to reach out to health-care providers, the provincial vaccine contact centre or a consultation service offered by SickKids hospital.
"Getting vaccinated remains the best defence against COVID-19," she wrote in a statement.
Health Canada announced last week that it had approved Moderna's two-dose pediatric vaccine for young children. The vaccine can be administered in doses one-quarter the size approved for adults, Canada's drug regulator said.
A spokesman for Jones said the minimum interval between shots is 28 days, though the National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommends waiting eight weeks between doses based on evidence suggesting a stronger immune response and more effective protection with a longer interval.
Stephen Warner said the Ministry of Health guidance is that anyone six months or older with recent COVID-19 infections should wait eight weeks after first having symptoms or a positive test, provided they are not immunocompromised and don't have a history of multisystem inflammatory syndrome.
The Opposition New Democrats called on the government to ensure family doctors and pediatricians had access to the vaccines.
Health critic France Gélinas said the party "shares the immense relief" of parents but noted that many would prefer to take their children to their own family doctor for the shot.
Immunocompromised youth aged 12 to 17 will also be able to schedule second booster doses next Thursday if six months have passed since their first booster dose, or fourth shot.
Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario's chief medical officer, stressed that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and will help protect children from the virus, noting that some can become very sick and require hospitalization after being infected.
"Even if a child has already had COVID-19, vaccination will help to further improve the immune response and provide more robust protection," he wrote in a statement.
"I encourage every parent and caregiver to consider getting their younger children vaccinated and protected, especially if they are immunocompromised or have other serious medical conditions.”
Stephanie Bergman said she was both excited and frustrated by the prospect of booking a vaccine for her daughter, who was born on the day the first COVID-19 case was reported in Canada.
The North Bay, Ont., mother said she was frustrated because it seemed to her that the government has lost the urgency it demonstrated with earlier rollouts of the vaccine.
In November, Ontario opened vaccine bookings four days after the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was approved for kids ages five to 11. When appointments for preschoolers and infants open on Thursday, it will have been two weeks since approval. She said she'd also like a clearer list of appointment options near her home and mandatory masks at vaccination sites.
"I just wish that we treated this age group the same as the previous," she said. "But I am so excited to be able to say yes to more things and get a taste of normal parenting because all of my parenting experience has been through the pandemic."
Once her daughter gets vaccinated, Bergman said she looks forward to taking her to swimming lessons, playdates with friends and her first dinner at a restaurant.
She said it will also alleviate concerns her daughter could infect friends and family – especially grandparents.
Public health units said they were planning to open clinics to the youngest residents once vaccine supply arrives, and some were planning events to answer parent and guardian questions.
The top doctor in Peterborough, Ont., planned to host an Instagram live event on the health unit's page to talk with parents and guardians about the vaccine, and the health unit said it would collaborate with doctors and neighbouring health units for a similar event in August.
A virtual town hall to answer parent and guardian questions is also being planned in Niagara Region with the medical officer of health next Tuesday.
The health unit said it's concerned about vaccine hesitancy related to what the World Health Organization has called a "massive infodemic" during the pandemic, which has seen people overwhelmed with information, some of it inaccurate.
"We are very concerned about vaccine hesitancy and believe it has been a factor in the relatively low uptake of vaccines in children age (five) to 11 years," spokeswoman Courtney Westerhof said in an emailed statement from Niagara Region Public Health. "We anticipate vaccine hesitancy having a major impact on this age group as well."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2022.
Holly McKenzie-Sutter and Jordan Omstead, The Canadian Press
