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Graeme MacKay's Editorial Cartoon Archive Archives Kings & Queens Prime Ministers Sharing Special Features The Boutique Who? Presidents Saturday May 22, 2021 May 29, 2021 by Graeme MacKay Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 22, 2021 Ontario to provide 2nd dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine after temporary suspension Ontario’s top doctor says the province will now allow second doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to be administered. May 20, 2021 Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, said the second dose administration will begin with those who received their first dose between March 10 and 19. “Nothing is more important than the health of Ontarians, and for the best protection against COVID-19 it is vital that everyone who received the AstraZeneca vaccine for their first dose receives a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine,” said Williams. Shots will begin to the week of May 24, with informed consent. Williams said those who are eligible should contact the provider who administered their first dose to book their appointment. The announcement immediately applies to those who received their first dose during Ontario’s initial pharmacy rollout at locations in Toronto, Windsor and Kingston. Williams was joined at Friday’s update by Dr. Dirk Huyer, the co-ordinator of the provincial outbreak response. For those who received their first dose after March 19, they will be able to get their second shot within the recommended interval of 12 weeks. Williams said more info will be made available soon. March 25, 2021 “The province is working with primary care providers and pharmacies to ensure second dose appointments are scheduled in advance of the 12-week interval,” Williams said. Several provinces have stopped giving the shot because of concerns about rare, fatal blood clots. However, Williams said the health risks posed by the vaccine are low. He said new data indicated the benefits far outweigh the risk with second doses. “Data from the UK strongly suggests a much-reduced risk of VITT in second doses of AstraZeneca — one in 600,000,” a release said Friday. Ontario had paused the use of the vaccine but still had tens of thousands of doses in storage. Huyer said there are 55,000 doses set to expire by May 31. Nearly one million Ontario residents got the AstraZeneca vaccine as their first shot between March 10 and May 11. Health authorities were trying to decide whether to resume using the AstraZeneca shot or if a different vaccine should be substituted for second doses. Ontario said it is still waiting on a recommendation on mixing doses from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI). More than 7.5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ontario, with formulations from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca. ( Global News ) Posted in: Ontario Tagged: 2021-19 , AstraZeneca , covid-19 , fireworks , immunization , Long weekend , Ontario , pandemic , Vaccine , Victoria Day Friday May 21, 2021 May 28, 2021 by Graeme MacKay Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday May 21, 2021 Golf, tennis, other outdoor sports to open across Ontario as part of 3-step reopening plan May 18, 2021 Golf, tennis, basketball and other outdoor sports are set to reopen across the province on Saturday as part of a three-step plan aimed at gradually allowing for more indoor and outdoor activities to resume by the end of summer. Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced details on Thursday as Ontario continues to see signs that point to the devastating third wave of COVID-19 in the province receding. Under the new plan, restrictions will be eased gradually through June, July and August based on vaccination rates and key public health and health-care indicators. The current stay-at-home order will remain in place until June 2, with the exception of these newly announced changes to some outdoor activities. Ford said the changes are the result of current restrictions. “These measures have worked,” he said. “We are seeing increasingly positive trends in key public health indicators.” The three phases of the province’s plan are: November 12, 2020 Phase 1: An initial focus on resuming outdoor activities with smaller crowds where the risk of transmission is lower. This includes allowing outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people, outdoor dining with up to four people per table and non-essential retail at 15 per cent capacity. Phase 2: Further expanding outdoor activities and resuming limited indoor services with small numbers of people. This includes outdoor gatherings of up to 25 people, outdoor sports and leagues, personal care services as well as indoor religious services, rites or ceremony gatherings at 15 per cent capacity. All indoor gatherings in this phase will require face coverings. Phase 3: Expanding access to indoor settings, with restrictions, including where there are large numbers of people and where face coverings can’t always be worn. This includes indoor sports and recreational fitness, indoor dining, museums, art galleries, libraries, casinos and bingo halls, with capacity limits. ( CBC ) Posted in: Canada Tagged: 2021-18 , bomb , celebration , COVID-1 , Dom Perignon , Doug Ford , fourth wave , lockdown , Ontario , pandemic , reopening Thursday May 20, 2021 May 27, 2021 by Graeme MacKay Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday May 20, 2021 Vaccination Patriotism Ten thousand shots was the hope. The result was 10,470. That’s how many doses of COVID-19 vaccine were administered at an immunization clinic at the Thorncliffe Park Community Hub in Toronto on Sunday. Until well after dark, long lines snaked through the parking lot, where people were entertained by DJs before entering the cavernous site. By the end of the day, the clinic, run by more than 50 local community and health care organizations, set a record for the most shots administered at one location on a single day. That record-breaking day in Toronto is a reason why Canada is about to surpass the United States—likely on Thursday—when it comes to the percentage of population with first doses. Right now, Canada has given first doses to 44.7 per cent of its population. In the United States, it’s 47.3 per cent. March 31, 2021 First doses is an important metric, for not only do first doses slow the spread of COVID-19 within communities but they are “a sign of people’s willingness to get vaccinated,” says Trevor Tombe, an associate professor of economics at the University of Calgary who provides daily updates on Canada’s vaccine progress on his Twitter feed as well as his GitHub page. “You can’t get your second shot unless you’ve got your first. And so measuring how many people are willing to get their first shot tells us the state of demand for vaccines in Canada.” This week alone, Canada will receive 4.5 million doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccine (Pfizer moved up next week’s delivery because of the Victoria Day long weekend). And that has allowed provinces to open the vaccine appointment spigot even wider: As of May 18, everyone aged 18 and older in Ontario can book a time to get their shot on the provincial system. March 4, 2021 This ramp-up in Canada’s vaccine rollout has been a long time coming. On March 1, vaccine deliveries were so small that Canada wasn’t on pace to reach 75 per cent of its population having first doses until Nov. 24, 2022. Then, vaccine supply accelerated in April and May. Now, at our current pace, Tombe’s model suggests that Canada should reach 75 per cent by June 19. In addition, 75 per cent of all eligible Canadians 12 and up could have second doses by the second week in August. Any comparison with the United States interests Canadians. On April 9, when Canada’s per capita rate of new cases surpassed that of the United States for the first time, there were rumblings about what went wrong—Canada’s third wave was intensifying while the United Sta...