alberta pediatricians plead for strong covid rules until 85% vaxxed
'we don’t want to see any more of our young patients getting sick. they are vulnerable and it is our job to protect them'
aug 10 2021
3 minute read
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by: lisa johnson
alberta pediatricians are pleading with premier jason kenney to keep covid-19 health measures in place to protect children and vulnerable families weeks before unvaccinated students are set to return to school.
in a monday letter, the alberta medical association (ama) section of pediatrics, representing more than 300 doctors who treat children, said rolling back testing, tracing and mandatory isolation before at least 85 per cent of the population is immunized, or the rate of covid-19 transmission slows significantly, puts children at risk.
they said alberta’s plan, which will lift the mandatory isolation requirement for those who test positive and many remaining mask mandates beginning aug. 16, will further accelerate the spread of the delta variant.
“there is no scientific basis to abandon these measures during the start of a fourth wave of the pandemic,” the letter said.
dr. tehseen ladha, university of alberta assistant professor of pediatrics and one of 13 members of the ama’s section of pediatrics to sign the letter, said in a news release the province can learn lessons from other jurisdictions that abandoned similar protective measures and saw rapid increases in pediatric hospitalizations, including louisiana and florida.
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“as we near the start of the school year, the relaxed public health measures will result in a fourth wave where covid-19 will spread quickly throughout unvaccinated populations and children. this poses a high risk to children and families,” ladha said.
“we don’t want to see any more of our young patients getting sick. they are vulnerable and it is our job to protect them.”
public health experts and physicians across the country have cautioned against the province’s plan to lift measures since it was announced, including the edmonton zone medical association and the canadian paediatric society.
kenney said monday at an unrelated event that he remains confident in his government’s plan and the protective effect of vaccines, despite concerns.
“it’s hardly a revelation that there is a diversity of views about how best to address the covid challenge. here in alberta, i think we’ve done a good job,” said kenney, who added the province is working on developing a plan for the safe reopening of schools.
“covid does not pose a greater risk to younger children, particularly in terms of severe outcomes, than the regular seasonal flu … and that was the case even if you had zero vaccine coverage,” said kenney.
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as of monday’s latest covid-19 update, the province has so far vaccinated 76.4 per cent of eligible albertans with one dose, and 66.9 per cent with two doses. however, that represents only 65 per cent of the entire population, including ineligible children under 12, who have received one shot, and 59.6 per cent who have received two.
the pediatricians said that number leaves the province “far from reaching herd immunity and nowhere near the endemic phase of covid-19.” the ama release said marginalized families, including racialized people, indigenous people, and frontline workers will be disproportionately affected by the province’s decisions because they cannot choose to keep their children home when community transmission is high.
opposition ndp health critic david shepherd said the government’s plan would recklessly destroy the province’s alberta’s testing, tracing and isolating measures.
“today, alberta doctors are telling (premier) jason kenney that failure to act would be an abdication of his responsibility to protect those who cannot protect themselves,” said shepherd.
the ndp also called on the government to test post-secondary students, provide vaccination clinics on campuses, and spend $83 million on extra sanitization, cleaning staff, and personal protective equipment for students, faculty and staff when they return to classes in september.
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on monday, the province reported the country’s highest number of active cases of covid-19, at 3,380, and an r value, or rate at which one case spreads to others, at 1.25 for the previous week beginning last monday.
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