Officials in Chatham-Kent have begun working on vaccination policies to be carried out across the municipality.
The province announced Tuesday it's making COVID-19 vaccination policies mandatory in high-risk settings, pausing the exit from the Roadmap to Reopen, and providing third doses of a vaccine to vulnerable populations.
Chatham-Kent Chief Administrative Officer Don Shropshire says its top priority will be post-secondary schools, women's shelters, and licensed retirement homes.
"I think from a municipality standpoint, as an employer and provider of essential services, we are looking at balancing the protection required for our clients and our staff," said Shropshire. "The requirement to go to mandatory vaccinations is something we need to look at how it's going to get implemented."
Shropshire said the municipality is also exploring options for residents who cannot receive a COVID-19 vaccine because of a medical condition.
"Some of the things that we are currently exploring is if people will have to keep wearing protective equipment or is there a protocol for regular testing that needs to be established," said Shropshire. "There are all sorts of stuff that needs to be considered but it comes down to balancing those requirements to ensure that everyone is going to be safe."
The province has mandated that all hospitals, home and community care service providers, and ambulance services have a vaccine policy for employees, contractors, students, and volunteers. Those vaccination policies must be effective no later than September 7 and will require people to show proof of full vaccination against COVID-19.
"We got [the information] yesterday, so we are just trying to go through the documentation to make sure we are being compliant and that our policies take all of these different aspects into consideration."
Shropshire said localized policies will be mandated no later than the first week of September.
