For Immediate Release
Friday, October 11, 2024 | 12 p.m. | Windsor-Essex County
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) continues to remind residents to stay safe this respiratory illness season. One of the best ways to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations and emergency department visits is by staying up to date on available vaccinations for preventing respiratory illnesses.
This year, the WECHU will focus immunization efforts on vulnerable populations as part of the Ontario fall 2024 respiratory illness season immunization campaign. Individuals are encouraged to get their influenza (flu) and COVID-19 immunizations as soon as they are available to them.
The Province has expanded access points with pharmacies and health care providers as the primary sources for COVID-19 and influenza (flu) vaccines, directing focus for local public health units, like the WECHU, on reaching populations with limited vaccine access options.
Pharmacies and health care providers are expected to begin receiving and offering updated fall 2024 formulations of vaccines in mid-October, ahead of the general eligibility date of October 28, 2024. The WECHU is currently focused on distributing vaccines to hospitals and long-term care homes, which will be followed by supporting the vaccination of other priority groups in our community, including:
High-risk:
- Adults 65 years of age or older
- Individuals 6 months of age and older who are:
- residents of long-term care homes and other congregate living settings
- pregnant
- in or from First Nations, Métis or Inuit communities
- members of racialized and other equity-deserving communities
- those who have underlying medical conditions that place them at higher risk of severe COVID-19, including children with complex health needs
Priority populations:
- Children 6 months to 4 years of age
- Staff and care providers of long-term care homes and other congregate living settings
- Health care workers
- First responders
- Individuals with significant exposure to birds and mammals (such as poultry, livestock, slaughterhouse and processing plant workers, wildlife officers/researchers, and veterinarians)
Talk to your health care provider about getting vaccinated or find a pharmacy offering vaccination near you by searching online at https://www.ontario.ca/vaccine-locations. Once available, appointments at the WECHU for eligible priority groups can be booked online at https://www.wechu.org/cv/booking.
To support additional layers of protection this season, Ontario is continuing the high-risk older adult RSV vaccine program that was introduced in 2023 with expanded eligibility. Through the high-risk older adult vaccine program, the vaccine will be free of charge for adults aged 60 years and older who are:
- Residents of long-term care homes, Elder Care Lodges, or retirement homes
- Patients in hospital receiving alternate level of care (ALC) including similar settings (e.g., complex continuing care, hospital transitional programs)
- Patients receiving hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis
- Recipients of solid organ or hematopoietic stem cell transplants
- Individuals experiencing homelessness
- Individuals who identify as First Nations, Inuit, or Métis
New this fall, families with infants and high-risk children up to 24 months old will have access to the new RSV immunization product, Beyfortus®, through the publicly funded RSV prevention program. Pregnant women will also have the option to receive a single dose of Abrysvo®, an RSV vaccine that can provide protection for their infant from birth to six months of age. More details on the expanded RSV program can be found online at http://www.ontario.ca/page/respiratory-syncytial-virus-rsv-prevention-programs.
To learn more about how to reduce the spread of respiratory illnesses this fall, visit www.wechu.org or speak with your health care provider.