Over 45,000 fourth doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered in Toronto since eligibility opened to 18+

Toronto Public Health says they have administered over 45,000 fourth doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to residents since the eligibility for a second booster opened up to all those 18 years of age or older.

There were also 4,326 third doses given out during the same timeframe.

Ontario opened up fourth doses to the majority of the population last Thursday as calls for the eligibility to expand have grown stronger. Since then, 171,761 fourth shots have been administered across the province.

Prior to July 13, only adults 60 years of age and older, Indigenous peoples and those who are immunocompromised were eligible. Nearly 300,000 people have now received a fourth dose.

Ontario also announced Thursday the newly approved vaccine for children six months old to under five years will be available as early as next Thursday. Toronto says they anticipate being able to start vaccinations on July 28 and will soon provide further details.

The surge in vaccinations comes as the seventh wave of the COVID-19 pandemic hits Ontario, fueled by the BA.5 variant of the virus.

Hospitalizations in the province were up 34 per cent this week and is at the highest rate since May 11, however, there are indications the latest wave is starting to wane.

Almost 12,000 new cases were reported across the province over the last seven days. However, the total number of new cases is underreported after the province changed who is eligible for PCR testing.

The positivity rate was listed at 15 per cent on Thursday based on just over 14,000 tests processed in the last 24-hour period.

A new vaccine targeting the current strains is expected to be approved by Health Canada in the fall.

With files from John Marchesan