WATERLOO REGION — Vaccination progress over two weeks has yet to improve this region’s poor standing on COVID-19.
Data released Friday shows this region continues to lead almost the entire province in new infections while still trailing most of the province in immunization.
Public Health Ontario reports that on June 30 this region ranked 30 of 34 public health units for share of population fully vaccinated with two doses. That’s unchanged from June 23 and June 16 even as the region more than doubled the number of fully vaccinated residents over that period.
By June 30 there were almost 159,000 people fully vaccinated, which is 27 per cent of the total population. Four other regions have less vaccination and all are smaller. This includes the London area at 24 per cent of the total population fully vaccinated.
This region compares better in partial vaccination, with 66 per cent of the total population given at least one dose. That’s at the provincial average and puts the region in the middle of the province.
Experts say full vaccination is the best way to fight off the highly infectious Delta variant that has made this region a hot spot and persuaded medical officer of health Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang to delay the next stage of economic reopening.
New data shows that by June 30 this region ranked second in the province for new COVID infections in the past 14 days. Only the tiny Timmins-area health unit in northern Ontario was hit harder. A slightly smaller surge has hit the Grey-Bruce area that includes Southampton.
The province has sent extra doses and mobile vaccination teams to this region in a bid to boost vaccination rates. The public health unit has added clinic hours, loosened rules to allow for first dose walk-ins, and topped up vaccines for pharmacies.
Delaying the reopening past June 30 means salons stay closed, restaurant patios can only put four people at a table, sports leagues can’t have games and stores can’t expand capacity.
This region fell behind Ontario in vaccinations in March. The trend accelerated in May as the province temporarily diverted doses to hot spots elsewhere. Some ground was recovered in June but it is taking longer to erase the vaccine shortfall than it took to develop it.
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Mapping reveals slow progress as Waterloo Region ramps up COVID-19 vaccines - TheRecord.com
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