Ottawans 50 and up can book vaccine appointments Thursday

The lower age limit for COVID-19 vaccinations will drop even furtherthis week, with all Ottawans 50 and older able to book an appointment as of Thursday morning.

Anyone born in or before 1971 will be able to schedule a shot at a community clinic as of 8 a.m. on May 6, the city said in a statement Sunday evening.

People can signup throughthe province's online portal or callthe provincial vaccine booking line at 1-833-943-3900, which is available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.

Walk-ins at community clinics will not be accepted, the city said. Any vaccine doses leftover at the end of the day will be given to people on the waitlist.

"Priority populations" who've only been able to book using the call centre will also be able to book online as of Thursday, the city said.

They include people with the highest-risk health conditions, child-care workers in licensed child-care settings and education workers who directly supportstudents with special education needs.

Had just expanded to 55+

The vaccine rollout had just been expandedFriday to include all Ottawans 55 and older.

The city also confirmed the province's previous announcement that residents 18 and older living in COVID-19 "hot spots" would be able to book vaccine appointments as of Monday.

There are three such hot spots in Ottawa, covering the K1T, K1V and K2V postal codes.

The provinceplans toopenup booking to all adultsby the end of May, anticipating the arrival in Ontario ofmillions of doses of the Pfizer-BioNTechand Moderna vaccines.