Saskatchewan residents aged 80 and older will be able to access the COVID-19 vaccination appointment booking system effective 8 a.m. tomorrow (Friday, March 12).
Both the online saskatchewan.ca/covid19-vaccine booking system, along with the telephone booking system 1-833-SASKVAX (1-833-727-5829), will be open for additional appointments starting Friday morning.
Saskatchewan’s COVID-19 booking system launched to residents 85 and over on Thursday, with a relatively successful opening day.
During the initial hours of the system launch, a total of 3,836 appointments were booked. The online booking option was the most popular booking method with 2,898 appointment booked, while 938 per booked via the phone line.
Health officials note that the wait time on the phone was about 126 minutes either on the line, or for those waiting for a call-back. And while 938 phone appointments were booked, the phone system received a total of 4,524 calls. A number of calls were from people who were ineligible, from people wanting to confirm their existing appointment, or individuals seeking general information for vaccine.
VACCINE INFORMATION:
What you need to know about appointment availability
· Immunizations are only available by-appointment at this time. Drop-in and mobile clinics, as well as access through participating pharmacies will be available in the future.
· You can have a friend or family member call to register or schedule your appointment for you. Identification will be required at the time of the actual appointment.
· You will receive confirmation soon after your appointment has been made. There is no need to call the phone line to confirm appointment details.
· Clinic availability is dependent on vaccine availability. Additional clinics will be added as Saskatchewan receives more doses.
· At this time, existing demand for vaccine far outweighs our available supplies.
· The booking office does not have access to extra appointments than what is available online.
· Second dose appointments are not available at this time. Public communication will take place once these appointments become available.
Individuals are NOT eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccine at this time if:
· You have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the last 90 days.
· You have received any other vaccine in the last 14 days.
· You have received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine previously elsewhere.
