As Omicron Variant Spreads, Niagara Falls MP Urges Ford Government to Deliver More Vaccine Booster Shots to Niagara

Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates

“Having spoken with our pharmacies it is clear that Niagara is not being given enough booster doses to meet capacity at our pharmacies and primary care providers. Some pharmacies are finding that the doses they are receiving are considerably less than the doses they’re ordering. This means that they’re forced to book booster dose appointments well into 2022. This is not acceptable for Niagara and lives depend on your quick action to rectify this.”                                                                        – from an Open Letter Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates sent this December 13^th to Ontario’s Health Minister

An Open Letter to Ontario’s Deputy Premier and Health Minister from Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates Posted December 14^th, 2021 on Niagara At Large

To Ontario Health Minister and Deputy Premier Christine Elliott

RE: Immediate need for doses at pharmacies and primary care providers in Niagara

I (Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates) am writing to you today (this December 13^th)  to urgently request that your Ministry release additional booster shot dosages to pharmacies and primary care providers in Niagara. As you likely know, Niagara Region Public Health has made the understandable decision to focus their vaccination efforts on children aged 5-11 years old for the next few weeks. As Public Health tells us, children have three times higher rate of getting COVID-19 than any other age group, and they have not yet had any chance to be vaccinated. They are working to provide every child a chance to get a first dose so they can have some protection before the holiday season. Obviously, we support the decisions made by our public health professionals. However, this means that those aged 50+, and including our at-risk seniors, are required to turn to pharmacies to get their booster doses. Having spoken with our pharmacies it is clear that Niagara is not being given enough booster doses to meet capacity at our pharmacies and primary care providers. Some pharmacies are finding that the doses they are receiving are considerably less than the doses they’re ordering. This means that they’re forced to book booster dose appointments well into 2022. This is not acceptable for Niagara and lives depend on your quick action to rectify this. While we continue to await further research into the omicron variant now circulating in Ontario, it is clear that booster doses provide an additional layer of protection for those who are at-risk and received their second doses more than six months ago. This cohort includes many seniors who make up more than one in four residents in Niagara, one of the high proportions of seniors in the country. Given that your Government has had almost two years to ensure that Ontario’s supply of vaccines and distribution networks can meet the task of confronting emerging public health concerns there should be no reason that Niagara is short-changed when it comes to booster doses. I am asking you to immediately confirm that Niagara will receive its fair share of doses and not be denied them as we were in initial phases of the vaccination campaign. I am asking you that you commit to immediately releasing more dosages so that Niagara’s pharmacies have the dosages they need to meet the targets set by your own government. I eagerly await your reply and commit to working alongside you to ensure this occurs. Sincerely, Wayne Gates, Member of Provincial Parliament for Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Fort Erie NIAGARA AT LARGE Encourages You To Join The Conversation By Sharing Your Views On This Post In The Space Following The Bernie Sanders Quote Below.

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