The Ontario government has released an Ethical Framework for COVID-19 vaccine distribution. This framework outlines a priority list for who will first get vaccinated against COVID-19 as doses arrive in Ontario.
Development for the framework was made in partnership with the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force to guide further vaccine prioritization and distribution across the province.
The province of Ontario has created a special webpage so people can learn more about the new framework and its distribution plan.
A news releases says the province "continues to vaccinate vulnerable populations and those who care for them through what's being called Phase One of a three-phase implementation plan" (as additional vaccines become available.)
Details were provided this week by COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force members Dr. Dirk Huyer, Ontario's Chief Coroner and Coordinator for Provincial Outbreak Response, and Dr. Maxwell Smith, a bioethicist and assistant professor at Western University.
"This ethical framework is a clear demonstration of our commitment to Ontarians to be transparent," said Rick Hillier, Chair of the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force. "We know that people are eager to get vaccinated and this framework helps ensure that we do it in an ethical, effective and compassionate way."
The three Phases of vaccine distribution
Ontario plans to expand vaccinations to a wider range of the population in the late spring and summer. Here's what the government is planning:
PHASE ONE: Now until Mid-Spring
The province will focus on health-care workers and the residents of long-term care facilities and retirement homes, which have experienced widespread and deadly outbreaks throughout the pandemic.
The province says it will also offer vaccines to select vulnerable communities during this phase, such as First Nations in Northern Ontario.
Ontario expects to receive an additional 50,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the first week of January, and approximately 80,000 per week after that for the remainder of the month. Up to 50,000 more doses of the Moderna vaccine are also expected next week.
Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr shared this image on Twitter of current responsibilities for Halton Region and other branches of government and health units in Phase 1:
Halton Region
PHASE TWO: Mid-Spring to Early Summer
Phase 2 will mark the start of a widespread campaign to administer millions of vaccines every month to a wider range of Ontario's population.
Hillier said the province anticipates that it will receive 15 million doses of vaccine between April and the end of June, or about five million per month. It's not yet clear how many doses of each vaccine will be included in that supply.
The province plans to set up mass vaccination sites during this phase to administer the doses. Ontario says it has not yet decided how it will prioritize access during the start of this phase, though Hillier said essential workers and older Ontarians would likely be first in line.
He said people 75 and older might be prioritized, followed by people aged 50 to 75. Hillier also listed farm workers, police officers and teachers as examples of essential workers who could be prioritized during this phase.
The province's goal is to vaccinate approximately 8.5 million residents by the end of this phase.
PHASE THREE: August 2021 and Beyond
Hillier referred to the third and final part of the campaign as the "steady state" phase, in which the vaccine will be widely available on an ongoing basis at places like family doctors' offices and pharmacies.
Hillier also said that getting a COVID-19 vaccine during this period should be no harder than getting a shingles or flu vaccine. There is also no guarantee this phase will begin in August.
"One of the most important aims of the COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Task Force since its beginning has been to ensure that the most promising vaccines are distributed to Ontarians safely, fairly and as quickly as possible," said Dr. Huyer.
Learn more about the new framework online with the Province of Ontario.
