TORONTO – The City of Toronto has extended it’s COVID-19 Vaccine Engagement Teams to March 2023
Today, Mayor John Tory, joined by the City of Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa, announced that the City of Toronto is extending the operation of its COVID-19 Vaccine Engagement Teams (VETs) until the end of March 2023, ensuring continued support for COVID-19 vaccine equity and access for all residents.
The VETs operate across the city in 17 geographic and population-based consortiums made up of more than 150 health, community and faith-based organizations. This includes more than 720 community ambassadors who reflect the diversity of Toronto’s equity-deserving groups and have roots in the communities where they work to build trust and help residents learn about the importance of COVID-19 and flu vaccination.
Since the program’s launch in March 2021, the VETs have spent more than 136,000 hours building vaccine confidence. VETs have engaged with Torontonians more than 4.4 million times in more than 40 different languages. VETs continue to help people navigate the COVID-19 vaccine registration system and find a vaccine clinic in their neighbourhood with door-to-door visits, community events, phone calls, online social media campaigns and virtual events.