Doctors who give exemptions for COVID-19 vaccinations and the patients who get them are now being tracked by governments, says Blacklock’s Reporter..Dr. Howard Njoo, deputy chief public health officer, said regulators must make sure “only the really valid medical exemptions are issued.”.“Anecdotally, but in some discussions we’ve had with our counterparts in the provinces and territories, they’re looking very carefully in terms of what rate and how doctors are issuing medical exemptions,” Njoo told reporters..The number of exemptions is not known. The Health Agency has counted reports of 197 deaths and 19,984 reports of “adverse events following immunization.”.Njoo told reporters he would “refer you to the provinces and territories, whether they’re taking a close look to make sure that only the really valid medical exemptions are issued for any type of adverse reaction to vaccines.”.The Health Agency cited no evidence that doctors sympathetic to unvaccinated patients had issued false medical exemptions..“The individual physician will be able to assess,” said Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer..Cabinet’s own vaccination program for employees allows unimmunized workers to claim a medical exemption for numerous health reasons with a note signed by a doctor or nurse. Valid reasons included allergic reactions to vaccines, a history of heart trouble or “an immunocompromising condition.”.The Canadian Medical Association in an August 3 board statement endorsing vaccination for health care workers said “vaccine mandates generally allow exemptions, implicitly or explicitly, for those with underlying health issues and religious or conscientious objection..“To be defensible, any vaccine mandate must have exemptions for those who cannot be vaccinated or have bona fide religious or conscience objections,” said the CMA..Tam told reporters she was pleased with current vaccination rates based on statistics predating any compulsory immunization programs..“Canadians have really embraced the public health advice to get vaccinated. We have one of the highest vaccinated populations in the world. So, that’s great,” said Tam..The Health Agency estimated 83% of eligible Canadians, a total 27,712,192 people, were fully vaccinated with the number increasing at the rate of 283,000 a week..The immunization rate for Canadians over age 80, the group that accounted for most COVID-19 deaths in Canada, was 92%..“As we approach 90% of the eligible population having at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccines in Canada, evidence continues to show that being fully vaccinated provides good protection,” said Tam.
Doctors who give exemptions for COVID-19 vaccinations and the patients who get them are now being tracked by governments, says Blacklock’s Reporter..Dr. Howard Njoo, deputy chief public health officer, said regulators must make sure “only the really valid medical exemptions are issued.”.“Anecdotally, but in some discussions we’ve had with our counterparts in the provinces and territories, they’re looking very carefully in terms of what rate and how doctors are issuing medical exemptions,” Njoo told reporters..The number of exemptions is not known. The Health Agency has counted reports of 197 deaths and 19,984 reports of “adverse events following immunization.”.Njoo told reporters he would “refer you to the provinces and territories, whether they’re taking a close look to make sure that only the really valid medical exemptions are issued for any type of adverse reaction to vaccines.”.The Health Agency cited no evidence that doctors sympathetic to unvaccinated patients had issued false medical exemptions..“The individual physician will be able to assess,” said Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer..Cabinet’s own vaccination program for employees allows unimmunized workers to claim a medical exemption for numerous health reasons with a note signed by a doctor or nurse. Valid reasons included allergic reactions to vaccines, a history of heart trouble or “an immunocompromising condition.”.The Canadian Medical Association in an August 3 board statement endorsing vaccination for health care workers said “vaccine mandates generally allow exemptions, implicitly or explicitly, for those with underlying health issues and religious or conscientious objection..“To be defensible, any vaccine mandate must have exemptions for those who cannot be vaccinated or have bona fide religious or conscience objections,” said the CMA..Tam told reporters she was pleased with current vaccination rates based on statistics predating any compulsory immunization programs..“Canadians have really embraced the public health advice to get vaccinated. We have one of the highest vaccinated populations in the world. So, that’s great,” said Tam..The Health Agency estimated 83% of eligible Canadians, a total 27,712,192 people, were fully vaccinated with the number increasing at the rate of 283,000 a week..The immunization rate for Canadians over age 80, the group that accounted for most COVID-19 deaths in Canada, was 92%..“As we approach 90% of the eligible population having at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccines in Canada, evidence continues to show that being fully vaccinated provides good protection,” said Tam.
