About 10K vaccination appointments cancelled at two Ontario clinics due to lack of supply

TORONTO — Some 10,000 COVID-19 vaccine appointments that were scheduled to take place at two clinics in Scarborough between Wednesday and Monday are now being cancelled due to a lack of supply.

The Scarborough Health Network confirmed the cancellations in an email to CP24 Tuesday evening.

“Due to a shortage of vaccine, Scarborough Health Network will be closing its COVID-19 vaccination clinics at Centennial College and Centenary hospital effective Wednesday, April 14, with the goal of reopening as soon as we receive more supply,” SHN said.

The health network said that it is sending out notices this evening to those who are affected and that it would help them book a new appointment “at the earliest available opportunity.”

They said the last minute cancellations come as a result of waiting later in the hope that more supply would come through.

“We were hopeful that we would receive further vaccine supply and not be required to make the difficult decision to close our clinic doors,” SHN said.

The cancelled appointments were mostly for those 50 and over living in hot spot areas.

“We will continue to vaccinate approximately 1,000 Scarborough residents daily through our community agency partners in the hardest hit areas and we encourage Scarborough residents to book through the Toronto Public Health mass vaccination clinics in the interim,” SHN said.

In a statement, SHN Board Chair Maureen Adamson pointed to disparity in vaccine distribution.

“Scarborough continues to struggle with the incomprehensible disparity in vaccine distribution for Canada’s most diverse community,” she said.

“Scarborough is the backbone of Toronto. Our people are the essential workers that keep Ontario running. Our hospitals are seeing the highest rate of COVID-19 admissions throughout this pandemic and the positivity rate at our COVID-19 assessment centres in Scarborough has reached 24% which only underpins the need for a serious ramp up in vaccinations.”

The cancellations equate to about 2,000 appointments per day. It is not clear when supply levels will be sufficient for the clinics to resume.