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Ontario Hospital Association Urging Residents to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19

Wednesday, 25 August 2021 11:55

By Linda Morgan

The Ontario Hospital Association says the province could be heading backwards if vaccination rates continue to slow down.

The Ontario Hospital Association is urging residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19. 

In a release, the OHA notes hospitalization rates are on the rise, while vaccinations have slowed down. 

Officials say if more people don't get fully immunized, Ontarians could see a grim fall and winter. 

"We have all struggled with uncertainty and made very difficult sacrifices during the pandemic. After a taste of normalcy this summer, no one wants to go backwards. But that is a possibility if a significant number of Ontarians choose to remain unvaccinated. People who are unvaccinated are placing themselves and others at direct risk."

The OHA also says over 90 percent of the province's COVID-19 patients in the ICU, as well as more than 80 percent of those hospitalized with the virus who aren't in the ICU, are not fully vaccinated. 

So far, over 20.5 million vaccinations have been administered, with about 82.4 percent of Ontarians 12 and older having their first shot, and 75.3 percent having both. 

Officials note increasing the vaccination rate would ease pressures on hospitals and minimize disruptions to services that aren't related to the virus. 

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