Thursday will mark one month since the first coronavirus vaccinations were administered in Canada, but it will likely be several more months until the majority of Canadians have received their shots.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said as recently as Tuesday that “we are on track to have every Canadian who wants a vaccine receive one by September,” or possibly even earlier.
“If we can do it even quicker than that, that would be great news,” Trudeau said.
“The quicker everyone gets vaccinated, the quicker we’re going to be able to get back to a semblance of normality.”
Across Canada, initial vaccine efforts are focusing on health-care workers, seniors, and other especially vulnerable populations, including those in long-term care homes (LTC) but specifics and timelines vary.
So when can you expect to get vaccinated and how will you know when it’s your turn?
Global News has compiled a coast-to-coast look at what to expect from the COVID-19 vaccine rollout.
Click on your province or territory to jump directly to that section:
British Columbia — Alberta — Saskatchewan — Manitoba — Ontario — Quebec — New Brunswick — Nova Scotia — Newfoundland and Labrador — Prince Edward Island — Yukon — Northwest Territories — Nunavut
British Columbia
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What are the priority populations?
Long-term care residents, staff, essential visitors, people in hospices, health-care workers, and people in remote and isolated First Nations communities.
What are the target dates?
A goal of February has been set to vaccinate initial priority groups before the immunization program starts expanding.
The government says everyone the vaccine is recommended for will have the opportunity to be vaccinated by the end of the year.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
Public health will arrange for priority groups to be vaccinated and says “no action is required on the part of the public.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
A registration and record system is in development and will include a process to register for vaccine access and receive a formal record of immunization.
Alberta
What are the priority populations?
Respiratory therapists, ICU/health-care workers, LTC, ER staff, home-care workers and residents of LTC homes are first priority in January.
In February, the government says it will vaccinate seniors over the age of 75, First Nations and Métis people and persons over 65 living in a First Nation community or Métis settlement.
What are the target dates?
Alberta plans to have the capacity to administer 50,000 doses of vaccine per week by the end of January.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
“We are updating Albertans daily and will continue to do so in the days ahead,” the government says.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
The government says immunization is documented and viewable from Netcare and MyHealth Records.
Saskatchewan
What are the priority populations?
Long-term care residents and staff as well as health-care workers, followed by residents aged 80 and over, and then residents over the age of 50 in the north.
What are the target dates?
Priority populations should be vaccinated by April, at which point wider vaccination will begin.
Vaccines will be administered in clinics, by doctors, nurses and pharmacists.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
Unknown.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
Individuals will receive a record of their vaccination.
Manitoba
What are the priority populations?
ICU, LTC, acute-care workers born on or before Dec. 31, 1975; workers in COVID-19 immunization clinic, testing sites, and labs handling COVID-19 specimens; workers from designated COVID-19 hospital wards; provincial and federal correctional facility workers; and home-care workers employed by regional health authorities.
What are the target dates?
“During the month of January, Manitoba expects to be provided enough vaccine to provide approximately 10,000 immunizations per week,” the government says.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
The province issues regular bulletins that include updates on eligibility criteria and can be found here.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
No proof of vaccination is being provided on-site but the data is being collected in the province’s Public Health Information Management System.
Ontario
What are the priority populations?
Ontario is rolling out vaccines in a three-phased distribution plan.
According to the provincial website, Phase 1 begins with residents, essential caregivers and staff of congregate care settings for seniors; health-care workers; adults in First Nations, Métis, and Inuit populations; and adult recipients of chronic home health care.
Phase 2 will involve older adults, beginning with those 80 years of age and older and then decreasing in five-year increments over the course of the vaccine rollout. As well, vaccination will also expand to individuals living and working in high-risk congregate settings; front-line essential workers like first responders, education workers and those in the food processing industry; individuals with high-risk chronic conditions and their caregivers; and other populations/communities facing barriers related to the determinants of health across Ontario who are at greater COVID-19 risk.
Phase 3 will see the vaccine available to every Ontarian who wants to be immunized.
What are the target dates?
According to an update from the government on Jan. 13, the province is expecting to see roughly 1.5 million eligible people vaccinated by the end of Phase 1.
Ontario aims to have a first dose of the vaccine administered to all residents, health-care workers and caregivers in long-term care homes in the hardest-hit regions by Jan. 21 and to all nursing homes and high-risk retirement homes by Feb. 15.
The government is planning the next steps/identifying the next groups for Phase 2 to receive the vaccinations as early as March.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
A spokesperson says “the COVID-19 vaccine will not be mandated for Ontarians but we do strongly suggest that people embrace the opportunity.”
“Ontario has a central provincial solution supporting COVID-19 vaccine administration sites. This allows for standard processes and a common set of digital tools (e.g. recording administered doses, inventory management, appointment scheduling, receipt of vaccination) to ensure standardized timely high-quality data for the provincial response.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
“Each individual vaccinated receives a printed receipt of vaccination and if they consent to receive information electronically and provide the needed details, they will receive a digital receipt electronically via email,” the spokesperson said.
Quebec
What are the priority populations?
People who are vulnerable or people of significantly decreased independence who reside in CHSLDs, or long-term care homes (about 40,000 people) or in the RI-RTF; workers in the health-care network and social services in contact with patients; people living in RPA, or private seniors’ residences; and residents in isolated and remote communities.
Additionally, people aged 80 and older; people 70-79; people 60-69; adults under 60 years of age who have a chronic illness or a health problem that increases their risk of complications from COVID-19; adults less than 60 years of age without chronic illnesses or health problems but who provide essential services; and the rest of the adult population.
What are the target dates?
It is expected that 1.3 million doses will be received and administered by the end of March 2021.
“We have repeated it on numerous occasions: Quebec has the capacity to rapidly vaccinate a large number of people. The issue is the availability of these vaccines,” said a spokesperson, translated from French.
“Quebec is awaiting the delivery of more than 80,000 additional doses this week. Everything is going as planned.”
How will the province notify people of their turn?
Via the media, the website Quebec.ca, social media, advertising campaigns, and establishments.
A graph detailing the status of the vaccination rollout among the top six priority groups can be found here and additional information on the vaccine effort in Quebec can be found here.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
At the moment, no proof of vaccination is provided.
New Brunswick
What are the priority populations?
LTC residents and staff, health-care workers with direct patient contact, adults in First Nations communities, older New Brunswickers.
Starting in the spring, vaccination will expand to residents and staff of communal settings (homeless shelters, correctional centres, etc.), other health workers including pharmacists, first responders and critical infrastructure workers.
After that, once vaccine supply is continuous and robust, the vaccine will be offered to the entire population.
What are the target dates?
“It is anticipated that all New Brunswickers will have been able to be vaccinated by the end of September 2021.”
How will the province notify people of their turn?
“Health-care workers in direct contact with patients will be contacted by their employer.
“Long-term care residents will be contacted by their residence.
“Adults in Indigenous communities will be contacted by their First Nation.
“Seniors over 85 will be contacted by mail by the Department of Health. The letter will provide details on how to register for an appointment.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
Currently, patients are being issued a Record of Immunization at the time of their first dose which they must bring with them when they receive their second dose.
Nova Scotia
What are the priority populations?
Nova Scotia plans to vaccinate 86,000 adults over the age of 75 and 7,000 staff involved in the COVID-19 response as well as family physicians, paramedics and home-care workers by end of April.
Starting in May, the province plans to vaccinate all remaining health-care workers and essential workers, though it is currently unclear how “essential” is being defined.
What are the target dates?
Nova Scotia aims to have at least 75 per cent of the eligible population vaccinated by Sept. 30.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
“There will be a lot of communication as the vaccine rolls out to ensure Nova Scotians know when they may be able to get vaccinated,” a spokesperson said.
“In the meantime, we ask Nova Scotians to be patient and continue to be vigilant about public health measures.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
Nova Scotians will be able to access a record of immunization, just as they can for other vaccines they’ve received.
Newfoundland and Labrador
What are the priority populations?
Seniors in congregate living settings, health-care workers at risk of exposure, people of advanced age and adults in remote or isolated Indigenous communities.
Vaccinations will then expand to health-care workers not included in the first phase, to all congregate living residents and staff and to essential workers.
What are the target dates?
“Since vaccine supply will be limited in the beginning of 2021, the province is prioritizing who receives the vaccines first. It is expected that more vaccines will become available throughout 2021, and will be offered to all eligible individuals as soon as possible,” a spokesperson says.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
A spokesperson says information will be publicly provided as it becomes available.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
“Public Health will track who is vaccinated and it will be included in the individual’s immunization record.”
Prince Edward Island
What are the priority populations?
Residents/staff of LTC homes, health-care workers, seniors aged 80 or older, and adults living in Indigenous communities.
After that, the program will expand to seniors in their 70s, remaining health-care workers, residents of shared-living facilities, and essential workers.
What are the target dates?
The province aims to have 80 per cent of the adult population immunized by the fall.
“We anticipate having up to 15,000 Islanders immunized by the end of the first phase of our COVID-19 Immunization Program (end of March 2021),” the government says.
“Pending vaccine availability, all groups identified as priorities by the NACI (National Advisory Committee on Immunization) should be offered vaccine by the end of June.”
How will the province notify people of their turn?
The province says “we will let Islanders know when they can get vaccinated and how they can make an appointment when that information is available.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
P.E.I.’s Chief Public Health Office is in discussions with the federal government and provincial/territorial counterparts “about what a proof of vaccination could look like.”
Every Islander immunized will have their vaccine recorded into a registry.
“We do intend to provide Islanders with proof of their COVID-19 immunization.”
Yukon
What are the priority populations?
Priority populations include, but are not limited to: residents and staff of group living settings like long-term care homes, group homes, and shelters; health-care workers working in health-care settings, PSWs working directly with patients and clients; people over 80 who do not live in LTC homes; and Yukoners living in rural and remote communities, including First Nations people.
What are the target dates?
Yukon aims to immunize 75 per cent of the adult population by the end of March.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
The territory says it will utilize “many different tools to advise Yukoners of when their turn will be.”
Mobile teams are being sent to each rural community with advance notice.
“For example, next week we travel to Beaver Creek and Old Crow to deliver the first inoculation to eligible residents. Subsequent to that we will return to deliver the second shot. Residents will again be advised.”
Will there be proof of vaccination?
There will be individual electronic health records as well as a hard copy vaccination card.
Northwest Territories
What are the priority populations?
People of advanced age; people with existing chronic disease/multiple medical conditions; people who travel outside NWT regularly for medical care; health-care workers and those who provide care to high-risk vulnerable populations; those who live in NWT but work regularly outside or at work camps with out-of-territory workers; and those who live in a remote community, including Indigenous communities.
What are the target dates?
Northwest Territories plans to immunize 75 per cent of eligible adult residents by the end of March.
How will the province notify people of their turn?
People will be made aware through community notification as well as a schedule that is available online.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
The government says vaccine information will be “inputted into our current Electronic Medical Record system to allow a permanent record of administration. You will also receive an Immunization Card for your personal records.”
Nunavut
What are the priority populations?
Nunavummiut who are most at risk of either contracting COVID-19 or developing serious complications due to COVID-19, communities where health services are minimal, long-term care homes, and crowded facilities like homeless shelters and correctional facilities.
Depending on how many doses are received and how frequent shipments are, vaccination could be expanded to all adult Nunavummiut who wish to receive it in the same time as those most at risk.
What are the target dates?
“By the end of March 2021, the GN (Government of Nunavut) expects enough vaccines for 75 per cent of Nunavummiut over the age of 18.”
How will the province notify people of their turn?
The government says there will be “regular communications” via social media, community radio shows, press conferences, and public service announcements.
Will there be proof of vaccination?
“For a long time, Nunavut has had vaccination cards and we last updated it a couple of years ago,” says chief public health officer Dr. Michael Patterson, “so the Moderna vaccine can be recorded in the other vaccine slot. Same as some of the travel vaccinations.”
— With files from Global News’ Jigar Patel, Katie Dangerfield, and Ryan Rocca and from The Canadian Press.
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