As Canada confronts its worst measles outbreak in decades, new data show that public support for mandatory childhood vaccination is on the rise — but significant hesitancy remains among parents.The outbreak has spread across nine provinces so far, with the majority of cases reported in Alberta and Ontario. Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange issued a stark warning earlier this month: “Don’t get measles; get immunized.”The latest Angus Reid polling indicates that 70% of Canadian adults now believe childhood vaccination should be mandatory for daycare and school attendance, up from 55% last year. In Alberta, support has grown from 48% to 60%.Despite this increase, health officials are still far from reaching the 95% immunization rate required to establish herd immunity. Among parents with children under 12, 37% believe vaccination should remain a personal choice. Additionally, 22% of parents with children under 18 fall into the categories of either hesitant (13%) or outright opposed (9%) to following recommended childhood vaccination schedules.This growing debate over vaccination comes as Canada faces a dramatic resurgence of measles. The number of reported cases in 2025 is already four times higher than any year since 1998, when the disease was declared eliminated in the country.While the seriousness of measles is widely acknowledged—only 10% of Canadians agree that "measles isn’t as bad as people think it is" — this view is more common among supporters of the Conservative Party, with 18% expressing that sentiment. Among voters of other federal parties, it is nearly non-existent.Confidence in provincial governments to manage the outbreak remains shaky. One-quarter of Canadians say they have no confidence in their province’s response, with skepticism running highest in Alberta (37%), followed by Saskatchewan (30%) and Ontario (27%).The data suggest that while the measles outbreak has sparked renewed urgency around public health protections, vaccine hesitancy remains a substantial barrier to ensuring broad immunity.
