trudeau pledges fund to support provincial vaccine mandates
meanwhile, ontario reported 781 new cases of covid-19.
aug 27 2021
4 minute read
prime minister justin trudeau receives covid-19 vaccination.
blair gable
/
reuters
by: bruce deachman
a re-elected liberal government would introduce a fund to help provinces that implement a proof-of-vaccine requirement for non-essential businesses and public spaces.
the planned $1-billion covid-19 proof of vaccination fund, announced in mississauga friday by liberal leader justin trudeau, would help provinces acquire enough vaccines to ensure free booster shots and second-generation vaccines, and invest in studies to look at the long-term health impacts of covid-19.
“so if your premier, wherever you are across the country, if your premier mandates that everyone in your local restaurant or gym or other non-essential locations must be fully vaccinated and show proof, we’ll pay for the development and rollout of that program.
“a vaccination mandate for non-essential businesses is a good idea,” he added. “it keeps people safe, it encourages everyone to do the right thing, it keeps our businesses open and it keeps our economy rebuilding.
“this is about doing the right thing, and the smart thing.”
trudeau specifically urged ontario to mandate vaccinations and “passport” programs, saying, “already (b.c.) premier horgan and (quebec) premier legault have stepped up and i certainly hope that here in ontario premier ford steps up as well. it’s time to listen to public health officials and leaders like (mississauga mayor) bonnie crombie and we’ll be ready when he does.”
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crombie tweeted on thursday that ontario needs to step up and implement a standardized proof of vaccination program.
trudeau took a jab at conservative leader erin o’toole, saying that “we certainly can’t afford a party that would roll back our progress … from vaccines to $10-a-day childcare, none of this happens if erin o’toole is sitting across the table from doug ford or any other premier.
“one thing he won’t choose is vaccines,” trudeau added. “he can’t even tell his own candidates to get their shots.”
he also took a swipe at those protesting vaccines and mask mandates, noting that while that’s their choice, it’s one they’re imposing on others.
“because we only get through this pandemic if everyone steps up, not just for themselves, but for each other.”
meanwhile, ontario reported 781 new cases of covid-19.
there were also 17 new deaths reported, although health minister christine elliott said on twitter that 14 of the cases occurred two months ago and were added in a data cleanup.
in addition, elliott noted that 22 of the cases among long-term care health care workers were not recent cases and were also added in the cleanup.
elliott said that 634 of the new cases were among individuals not fully vaccinated or whose status is unknown.
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there are 306 people in hospital, 158 in icu due to covid-19. of the icu cases, 149 are not fully vaccinated or have an unknown vaccination status.
in eastern ontario, the province reported 33 new cases in ottawa. ottawa provides its own data later in the day, and its results can differ from provincial stats because the data are collected at different times of the time.
in the area, eastern ontario health, which includes cornwall and hawkesbury, had 12 new cases, while kingston reported two and leeds, grenville and lanark had three. no new cases were reported in the renfrew health unit.
the province performed 30,063 tests thursday, with an average positive level of 3.0.
there have been 562,756 cases and 9,489 deaths since the pandemic began.
latest covid-19 news in quebec
quebec’s health department says police complaints have been filed after politicians’ vaccine passport information was allegedly hacked.
the department said in a statement today it is aware of reports that people have managed to steal the qr codes of members of the quebec legislature and is taking the matter seriously.
the quick response codes are scannable codes containing a person’s name, date of birth and information about the vaccinations they have received.
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they are the central feature of the government’s vaccine passport system, which will be required as of sept. 1 to visit businesses the provincial government deems non-essential, such as bars, clubs and restaurants.
the government says nobody is allowed to use another person’s qr code and anyone who breaks that rule could face serious penalties.
businesses who require the vaccine passport will also be asked to check their customers’ photo id to ensure the name matches, and they are expected to report to police anyone who tries to use someone else’s qr code.
in quebec, 612 new covid cases were confirmed friday, and no new deaths.
the new figures bring the province’s overall case count to 387,230 since the pandemic began, and its death toll to 11,285.
there are 126 covid patients hospitalized in quebec, including 36 in intensive care.
additionally, the province administered 33,907 vaccine doses in the most recent 24-hour reporting period, for a province-wide total of 12,227,291.
-with files from the canadian press
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