WINNIPEG – Manitoba’s fight against COVID-19 is showing increasing signs of hope, as more groups become eligible, a campaign to immunize residents of personal care homes kicks off today, First Nations across the province begin distributing the first doses of their Moderna batches, and five-day test positivity numbers for Winnipeg nudge toward being the lowest they’ve been since November.
First responders and home-care workers with the WRHA born on or before December 31, 1960 were declared eligible by the province to get immunized. Registered emergency responders, patient transport workers, paramedics, nurses, and respiratory therapists born on or before December 31, 1975 are also now allowed to get the shot. There have been just under 10,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in Manitoba.
The province says, starting today, the 2000 doses of the Moderna vaccine that didn’t get shipped to First Nations will be used as part of their personal care home immunization campaign. Winnipeg’s Oakview Place Long Term Care facility begins immunizing residents today, among the first members of the general public to receive the shot. Immunization teams are visiting seven facilities, and plan to vaccinate more than 1,150 residents. In the span of 28 days, the province plans to vaccinate 9,834 people in personal care homes.
The province says they’ll also send 3,000 vaccine doses to a supersite in Brandon next week.