Toronto paramedics to receive COVID-19 vaccine ‘as early as tomorrow’: Union

The union representing Toronto’s paramedics says they will receive the COVID-19 vaccine this week.

A representative for CUPE Local 416 confirmed to CityNews that the city’s paramedics will begin to be inoculated as early as Thursday.

Mayor John Tory says there are three sites and that each one will be able to give shots to 50 paramedics per day.

“While overall vaccination policy and the parameters of this long-term care initiative are the responsibility of the province, this is an all government, all-hospital, all hands-on deck effort as you would expect for some of our most frail and elderly residents,” the Mayor said.

“Much of the vaccine rollout is beyond our control but I am determined and I know Chief [Matthew] Pegg and everyone on our Immunization Task Force is determined to do all we can at the municipal level to get as many people vaccinated in our city as quickly as possible.”

The city says paramedics are an extension of hospital emergency departments.

It says ensuring they get vaccinated is important for protecting hospital staff and other first responders.

The program is in partnership with Sunnybrook Hospital, Humber River Hospital, and the University Health Network (UHN).

“My team is committed to moving forward as quickly as possible to support COVID-19 vaccinations for residents, staff, and essential caregivers in long-term care homes,” Toronto’s top doctor, Eileen de Villa, said.

“All local health partners have come together and are working collaboratively. I have full confidence we will meet the January 21 deadline to vaccinate all long-term care staff, residents, and their essential care providers in Toronto.”

Ontario has had a slow start to its vaccination program, but the vaccine task force announced Tuesday that over 50,000 people have been inoculated in the province, with a focus on long-term care home residents and workers.

Gen. Rick Hillier, head of the vaccine task force, said Ontario would likely run out of vaccine doses by the end of next week and expressed a dire need for “thousands more” doses.

The province also announced Tuesday that all residents and health-care workers at long-term care (LTC) homes in COVID-19 hotspots will be vaccinated by Jan 21.