Internationally, people with disabilities have been disproportionately impacted by
COVID-19, accounting for nearly 60% of COVID-19 deaths in the UK and overall higher
mortality rates based on social, clinical, and demographic factors.
Ontario has prioritized people with disabilities across the three phases of its COVID-19
vaccination program, but there is a difference between availability and accessibility
of vaccination. Ontario’s 34 public health units are responsible for leading the local
distribution and administration of COVID-19 vaccines, and their public facing websites
serve as entry points for information on the accessibility of vaccination. On average,
these websites contain information about 5 of 18 key accessibility features, across
three domains: accessible communication, physical accessibility, and accessible social
and sensory environments.
Ontario needs a multi-pronged strategy to reach all people with disabilities that includes
improving information about communication accessibility, physical accessibility, and
social and sensory environment accessibility throughout the COVID-19 vaccination
journey. Ontario’s progress on vaccinating people with disabilities needs to also be
measured through enhanced data monitoring efforts.