Ontario health minister dismisses concerns over vaccine portal that prevents multiple bookings

TORONTO -

Ontario's Health Minister is facing criticism after suggesting parents who have difficultly booking multiple children for a COVID-19 vaccine should "simply" call a provincial vaccine hotline to resolve their issue.

Several parents of children five to 11 took to social media, on Tuesday, to highlight an issue with the provincial booking website which prevented them from registering several children for a vaccine appointment at the same time forcing families to choose separate dates and locations for the same household.

Booked both my kids for their vaccine on different days, in different regions. It was not smooth but it was possible, and for that I'm grateful.

— Beyhan Farhadi, PhD (@BBFarhadi) November 23, 2021

NDP MPP Catherine Fife highlighted the concerns at Queen's Park and accused the Ford government of "messing up" vaccine distribution in the province.

"I don’t know if it’s news to this government, but there are many families with more than one child," Fife said during Question Period "Why did the government not get this plan right again when they designed the vaccine portal at the very start of this process?"

Health Minister Christine Elliott immediately dismissed it as not being a "serious concern" and said parents with multiple children now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine should call the provincial booking hotline, instead of scheduling an appointment online.

"This is a problem that can be easily remedied by calling the line that one has always been able to call and making appointments for all two, three children, however many children you have," Elliott said.

"It’s not necessary to book them online for separate days. This could be done with a simple phone call."

READ MORE: What you need to know about booking a COVID-19 vaccine for your child in Ontario

Fife said the Minister's response was "flippant" and "disrespectful" to parents, some of whom, the NDP says, were forced to book appointments in separate regions for their children.

"The health minister basically admitted to designing a flawed program and if parents got frustrated, then they should just pick up the phone," Fife said.

A spokesperson for Elliott didn't provide clarity when asked by CTV News Toronto about the status of the issue but re-iterated the Minister's comments that parents could also go to a public health unit, pharmacy for multiple bookings.