Ontario may shorten interval between vax doses as more supply expected: Elliott

Ontario might shorten the length of time between COVID-19 vaccine doses as it prepares to receive more supply this month.

The province expects to receive weekly Pfizer vaccine shipments of more than 785,000 doses in May, and more than 938,000 doses next month.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said Monday that the additional supply might allow the province to shorten the four-month interval between the first and second shots.

“We expect that with the much larger quantities of the Pfizer vaccines that we’re receiving throughout the month of May, that we may well be able to shorten the timeline for people to receive their second doses,” she said.

If that happens, Elliott said people will be contacted to arrange a new time for their second appointment, adding that the new interval would be closer to the original timeline for vaccinations.

Pfizer recommends a 21-day interval between its two shots, while Moderna recommends four weeks and Oxford-AstraZeneca advises between four and twelve weeks.

Ontario extended the interval between doses this year in a period of slow vaccine supply to Canada, making some exceptions for certain at-risk individuals.

The province is sending half its vaccine supply to designated COVID-19 hot spots for the next two weeks.

The government has said it hopes to allow all adults in the province to book shots by the end of the month.