Photo courtesy of Chatham-Kent Public Health.

A bold statement from Chatham-Kent’s Chief Medical Officer, suggesting he’d like to open up the vaccination program to everyone in the municipality in the next few weeks or so.

As has been the case since the roll-out began, Dr. David Colby says everything depends on how much vaccine he can get his hands on.

“I see the supply lines opening up tremendously and being able to accelerate through the phases, where we have to prioritize who needs it most,” Dr. Colby says. “I’m really hoping within a very few weeks, we’ll be able to offer the vaccine to everyone who wants it.”

Just today, Health Canada gave the green light to the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Dr. Colby says with the newly approved AstraZeneca drug expected to begin arriving in CK shortly, he’s quite optimistic.

He says as more vaccine becomes available and the roll-out plan expands into Phase 2, residents will have more options on where to receive their shot.

“That will be a combined effort with not only the mass vaccination clinics, but family physicians, and community clinics, and pharmacies, and everybody joining into that vaccine effort.”

As of the end of the day Thursday, more than 7000 vaccines have been doled since the mass vaccination clinic opened on February 23rd.