Premier Doug Ford enlists former head of the Canadian Armed Forces to oversee COVID-19 vaccine distribution in the province

By Robert BenzieQueen’s Park Bureau Chief

The former head of the Canadian military will lead Ontario’s charge to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine, the Star has learned.

Retired Gen. Rick Hillier has been enlisted to chair the province’s new task force on the vaccine.

Hillier, who was chief of the defence staff of the Canadian Armed Forces from 2005 to 2008, was personally tapped by Premier Doug Ford, who will formally announce the appointment Monday.

“This is a military operation in the sense that the moment the vaccine hits our warehouses we want it deployed where it is most needed,” a senior government official said Sunday.

The insider, speaking confidentially in order to discuss internal deliberations, said Hillier’s COVID-19 vaccine task force will also include “doctors, scientists, logistical experts and Indigenous leaders.”