Windsor-Essex 'struggling' to boost vaccination rate, MOH says

While Windsor-Essex was once one of the leading health units in Ontario when it comes to COVID-19 vaccination rates, uptake has been lagging, and the region is behind the rest of the province.

Dr. WajidAhmed,medical officer of health, said he expected an eventual plateau, but not untilthe coverage rate was about 10 points higher than it is right now.

"We are struggling to increase that number, so we are making very small progress when we have tons of vaccines," Ahmed said at a live briefing on YouTube on Friday.

Ahmedpleaded for people to get vaccinatedin partdue to the threat of the Delta variant, a highly transmissible strain fuellinga COVID-19 resurgence elsewhere in the world.

The average number of vaccines administered in the region each day, which is above 3,300, has seen a "huge decline" last week and in recent weeks, Ahmed said.

"We continue to see that the uptake is moving down in Windsor-Essex," he said.

As of Friday's data, 76.8 per cent of adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, compared with 80.6 per cent of adults across Ontario.

The rates are lowest among people under 30, and they rise with each age bracket. Currently, just 54 per cent of those who are 12 to 17 have gotten at least one dose.

Ahmed wants to see a minimum of 80 per cent of eligible residents vaccinated, and at least 70 per cent coverage and in each age band, to break the chain of COVID-19transmission.

Due to the plateauing vaccination rates and a vaccine surplus, the health unit isoffering walk-in and same day appointments at its five mass vaccination sites, as well as a series of mobile clinics targetingpriority areas and youth.

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unitreported a daily increase of fivenew COVID-19 cases Friday, while 17 cases areactive throughout the region. Three people are hospitalized with COVID-19 in the region, all of whom are in intensive care.

One outbreak is ongoingat a work place in Windsor's health-care and social assistance sector.

While case counts and number of tests coming back positive remain at pandemic lows, there has been a slight increase in cases, said Ahmed, who suggestedit may be an effect of the recent reopening.

For the week that ended on Sunday, the local COVID-19 case rate per 100,000 people was 1.6, compared with 2.3 for the previous seven days.

COVID-19 in Sarnia-Lambton, Chatham-Kent

The public health unit for Sarnia-Lambton reported no new COVID-19 cases Friday, and four cases remainactive inthe area overall.

Chatham-Kentreported two new COVID-19 cases, while six are active overall.

Neither region has any active outbreaks.