AstraZeneca vaccines will be distributed in some Ontario pharmacies including in Toronto starting next week. Health Minister Christine Elliott says it’s part of a pilot project.

“We may be using AstraZeneca is some of the pharmacies that are going to be participating in the vaccine program but it really depends on when we receive the vaccines and how many we receive,” said Elliott.

The CEO of the Ontario Pharmacists Association says the pilot will begin next week at 380 sites in Toronto, Kingston and Windsor-Essex.

Ontario has said it will prioritize people between the ages of 60 and 64 for the AstraZeneca doses.

Minister Elliott says an updated vaccination rollout plan is “imminent” and that Ontario can likely bump up the timeline for when everyone can be vaccinated based on recent vaccine news on two fronts.

“We were looking at the end of the summer perhaps into September but I think it’s fair to say we will be able to shorten that timeline given the new volumes of vaccines coming in with AstraZeneca and the extension of the first and second doses for both Pfizer and Moderna meaning we can get more first doses into more arms.”