Ottawa residents looking to receive their second dose of the coronavirus vaccine are at risk of getting caught up between provincial directives allowing more people to book appointments and the ability of the city to access additional supplies of the vaccines to keep up with additional demand.

Starting June 14, seniors over the age of 70 will be able to book an appointment to get their second dose, however, they may have to wait until July in order to get it, especially if they want to get vaccinated at one of the city’s community vaccination clinics. At the same time anyone over the age of 12 is eligible to get their first dose.

The city explained the challenge it faces in a memo released to the public on June 3.

“Although we are receiving more vaccines from the province, the province has also significantly expanded eligibility and shortened select dose intervals at the same time, which will continue to squeeze appointment availability in our community clinics,” the memo states.

The memo goes on to explain, “As a result of recent provincial announcements, multiple age groups in Ottawa are now competing for the same appointments. Someone 12 and above looking for a first dose against someone 80 and above looking for an earlier second dose appointment, for example. It will soon become even more challenging to secure an appointment at a community clinic as the province has previously indicated that those 70 and above will be eligible for a shorten second dose interval as of June 14, which will add up to 80,000 more individuals looking for earlier appointments in June that are simply not available.”

The lack of available spots at the community clinics means that residents 70 and over will either have to try and book an appointment at a local pharmacy which has the vaccine or wait until July. The situation will be further exacerbated on June 28, when people who received their first dose between March 8 and April 18 will be able to book an appointment for their second dose.

On July 19, anyone who received their first dose between April 19 and May 9 will be able to book their second dose and on Aug. 2 anyone who received their first dose between May 10 and May 30 will be able to book their second dose. In essence, the vaccination program has become a free-for-all.

On a positive note, more than 600,000 people in Ottawa have received at lease one dose of the vaccine, representing over 65 per cent of the adult population. More than 60,000 people have received two doses.

Emergency and protective services general manager, Anthony DiMonte, says the city is ready, willing and able to increase vaccin-ations as soon as the supply increases.

“Our operations are designed to scale with supply,” says Dimonte. “With more supply from the Province, we can add capacity and expand community clinic operations, as required. With more supply we can continue to deliver excellent care and service to our community.”

In the meantime, unless more supply is confirmed from the province, residents looking to receive a vaccine in June are encouraged to try and book an appointment at a local pharmacy by contacting them directly.

A list of the pharmacies that are admin-istering the vaccine in Orléans can be found at covid-19.ontario.ca/vaccine-locations.