More postal codes added as Hamilton expands vaccines to those 50-plus in 5 ‘hot spots’
Published April 9, 2021 at 8:33 pm
Hamilton’s healthcare partners announced Friday (Apr. 9) that individuals who are 50-and-over and reside within the five designated community “hot spots” are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Members of the public who are 50-plus and live in the eligible postal codes L9C and L8W can book an appointment online using the Provincial booking portal: hamilton.ca/VaccineBooking
Those individuals will be booking appointments for a large-scale clinic.
Members of the public who are 50-plus and live in the eligible postal codes L9C, L8W, L8L, L8N and L9K can call the Public Health Services COVID-19 Hotline at 905-974-9848 (option 7) for an appointment at a mobile pop-up clinic.
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The pop-up clinic will be at Lake Avenue School, located at 157 Lake Ave North in Hamilton on April 10 and 11.
Walk-ups will continue to be turned away at all vaccination clinics.
Proof of address must be presented before receiving your vaccine.
Hot spot communities were identified this week by the Ontario government and Hamilton Public Health Services. They are considered to have been disproportionately affected by the virus.
To date, approximately 124,123 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered with one in five eligible Hamiltonians receiving it (21.2 per cent).
Premier Doug Ford announced Tuesday (Apr. 6) that the province was moving on to Phase Two of its COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan, with a focus on reaching those with specific health conditions and individuals residing in virus hot spots.
The Province also said it’s working to vaccinate people who live in congregate settings (such as shelters, correctional facilities and other residential facilities) and people who cannot work from home (such as warehouse and factory workers and teachers).
At the time, only the L9C and L8W Hamilton postal codes were designated as hot spots — drawing criticism from advocates as it was a perceived perpetual snubbing of the lower city — generally where the most at-risk individuals are located.
Days earlier, the government was blasted for its list of Hamilton pharmacies that were chosen to administer the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to those aged 55 and over.
Despite the request of the Hamilton Board of Public Health, not one of the 21 local pharmacies selected is located in the lower city.
Six politicians representing the lower city issued a poignant letter to Premier Ford.
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