By Gordon Lambie
Quebec’s Ministry of Health and Social Services is saying that as of Tuesday morning it is now possible for people booking an appointment for their second vaccine dose to modify the location and type of vaccine directly through the clicsante online platform. Although the platform will still offer suggested locations near the original vaccination site, people will no longer be tied to the exact same location as their first dose.
On Monday evening Health Minister Christian Dubé put out another call for people 18-39 years of age to get their vaccination, pointing out that there are still roughly 127,000 people in that age category who have not done so.
“If we want to maintain a positive situation, we have to get vaccinated,” Dubé wrote on Twitter.
As of Tuesday morning, a total of 8,161,356 doses of vaccine had been administered in Québec which, combined with a total of 21,945 doses administered outside of the province resulted in a for a cumulative total of 8,183,301 doses received by Quebecers. This accounts for at least one dose in 70.9 per cent of the population, and adequate vaccination in 27.4 per cent.
First dose vaccination in the Eastern Townships has changed little in the second half of the month of June, with 68.9 per cent of the population having received an initial shot as of Tuesday morning compared to 67.8 per cent on June 16. Second dose coverage has doubled over that same time, however, with just over one quarter of Townshippers now fully vaccinated. Broken down by age category, the region’s 18-29-year-olds remain the most vaccine hesitant, with only 61.7 per cent having received a first dose. They are followed by 30-39-year-olds at 63.6 per cent coverage, 12-17-year-olds at 68.8 per cent coverage, and 40–49-year-olds with 74.4 per cent coverage. All age groups 50 or over have surpassed 80 per cent coverage.
The Province of Quebec reported 71 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the total number of people infected to 374,731 and the number of active cases to 878.
There were four new deaths recorded, for a total of 11,207 since the start of the pandemic.
The number of hospitalizations decreased to 122, but the number of people in intensive care remained unchanged at 31.
There was only one new case reported in the Eastern Townships, in the Haute-Yamaska area. As a result, the number of active cases in the region dropped to 16, ten of which were from the Haute-Yamaska. Three of the remaining six cases were in Sherbrooke, with one each in Memphrémagog, Granit, and the Val Saint-François.
The region reported one new death, bringing that total to 352, but the number of people hospitalized remained unchanged at eight, with no one in intensive care.
