Province ramping up boosters as case numbers escalate

REGIONAL — Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent public health units are moving ahead with plans to ramp-up vaccination opportunities for those 18+ as the Ontario government announced last week that anyone 18 and over would be eligible for booster shots on Monday, December 20.

As those 50+ were eligible last week, appointments were booked quickly, leaving many without an appointment going into Christmas week.

Those 18+ can book through wevax.ca in Windsor-Essex or through getyourshotck.ca provided they are at least three months removed from their second COVID vaccine.

Windsor-Essex County Health Unit has plans to re-open the mass vaccination centre at the Nature Fresh Farms Recreation Complex in early January.

Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald says that re-opening should not impact the hockey rink side, but will sidetrack any activities in the gymnasium.

Both local health unit regions have been under modified restrictions for the last couple of weeks and the rest of Ontario followed suit over the weekend. Among those were restaurants and bars being restricted to 50 per cent capacity.

Due to recent allegations of tampering and forgery of vaccine passports, the government also mandated that you must have a vaccination QR code to dine inside a restaurant or attend sporting events. For those without cell phones, you can have your QR code printed out.

New to this area, grocery stores and big box retail are now only allowed a 50 percent capacity indoors, effective Sunday morning, December 19. Lineups were visible outside Walmart in Leam- ington on Sunday.

The new restrictions brought in by the province come under a surge of new COVID cases across Ontario that brought daily cases from the 700-800 range into the 4,000 range by this past weekend. The modeling shows new cases may reach 10,000 per day by early in the new year, if no steps are taken.

For more information on the restrictions put in place or to find your QR code, visit Ontario.ca.