Vancouver Coastal Health shuttering most large COVID-19 vaccination clinics

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – More than four months after the opening of mass COVID-19 vaccination clinics, Vancouver Coastal Health will soon be shutting most of them down.

Hundreds of thousands of British Columbians have been immunized at these 12 sites, such as the Vancouver Convention Centre, since since late March. All but three of them will be closing by the end of August.

The Italian Cultural Centre in Vancouver, the River Rock Theatre in Richmond, and the ICBC Test Collection Site in North Vancouver will remain open for shots. They are open for drop-ins or visits by appointments booked through B.C.’s Get Vaccinated registration system.

The closures mean more resources for localized outreach in areas where not as many people have received both doses. Vancouver Coastal Health says those vaccination sites will be opened “on an as-needed basis” and will be posted to its website.

As of Thursday, the province said 81.7 per cent of eligible British Columbians have received at least one vaccine dose, while 68.4 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Those figures followed the first-ever “Walk-In Wednesday,” where people could drop in to one of more than 50 clinics across B.C. to receive a shot. Health Minister Adrian Dix said Thursday, 16,505 doses were administered at those special clinics.

Dix called it a “success,” noting 20,000 doses were set aside for the one-day event.

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There are also now fewer COVID-19 testing sites across the region. They can also be found online.

Vancouver Coastal Health says more than 1.7 million vaccine doses have been administered in the region since the immunization campaign began.

B.C.’s COVID-19 daily case counts have been on the rise, with 402 infections recorded on Thursday. That’s the highest figure since May 21.

“Our province is currently facing a wave of cases in the unvaccinated,” said Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, who urged everyone who is not yet vaccinated to get their shots.

Last month Vancouver Coastal Health announced it was also dismantling a temporary medical facility at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

the 271-bed “alternative care site” was set up in April 2020, in the event hospitals were overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients. It was never activated.

With files from Lisa Steacy