BARRIE, ONT. -- On Friday, York Region opened the COVID-19 vaccine availability to children 12 years of age or older who live, work or go to school in the area.
Children must be 12 years old as of the date of their appointment to receive the Pfizer vaccine, which is the only vaccine authorized by the Government of Canada for people aged 12 to 17.
York Region's medical officer of health, Dr. Karim Kurji said Tuesday that vaccinating as many people as possible is important "because we believe that some of the transmission may actually be occurring in younger age groups. From time to time, you know, we do actually see some very young people being quite sick."
The region requires a parent or legal guardian to give consent to individuals 13 years old or under to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
In a media release, York Region says they have vaccinated 65 per cent of their adult population, that's more than 640,000 COVID-19 vaccines administered.
Kurji is reminding people to be vigilant throughout the summer, anticipating people won't be able to relax restrictions until about August when York Region anticipates having 85 percent of the population vaccinated.
With files from Craig Momney
