Canada’s two largest provinces are now under significant restrictions to curb surging cases of COVID-19 as the country prepares to ramp up vaccinations.
Canada will have received a total of 929,000 doses of the two approved COVID-19 vaccines by the end of the week. Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, vice-president of logistics at the Public Health Agency of Canada, said that includes delivery of 380,000 doses this week.
Fortin said Canada is expected to receive more than one million doses a week of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines beginning in April.
“This will signal our transition to the ramp-up stage,” Fortin said Thursday.
Limited supply remains a significant challenge for the time being, he added.
Canada has seen daily averages of 7,727 cases of COVID-19 in the last week, and Dr. Theresa Tam, the country’s chief public health officer, said hospitalizations and deaths are still increasing.
“This situation continues to burden local health-care resources, particularly in areas where infection rates are highest,” Tam said in her daily update on the pandemic.
The number of COVID-19 cases, including the new United Kingdom variant, are increasing rapidly in Ontario.
A stay-at-home order came into effect Thursday as the province reported 62 more deaths and 3,326 new novel coronavirus infections.
Among added measures is a requirement for people to wear a mask inside businesses and restrictions on the size of gatherings. All non-essential retail stores may only open between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Premier Doug Ford has said everyone must stay home and only go out for essential trips.
Ontario has so far avoided bringing in a curfew like one enacted in Quebec last weekend.
Hospitalizations continued to rise in Quebec to 1,523, with 230 people in intensive care. The province also reported 2,132 new cases and 64 more deaths due to COVID-19, including 15 in the past 24 hours.
Health Minister Christian Dube was expected to provide more details about Quebec’s vaccination campaign later Thursday.
The organization representing emergency doctors is calling for a clear description of who is being prioritized for first doses and why.
The Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians said Wednesday in a statement that many members in areas with limited human resources have not been vaccinated, while urban providers who have less patient contact appear to have received shots.
The group also wants priority to go to those directly caring for patients who are critically ill or suspected of having COVID-19.
The statement said communication so far don’t support claims that the vaccine rollout will follow an ethical framework.
Many doctors don’t know when they will be vaccinated and the association said that needs to change.