Canadian province of Quebec studies creating a tax for those who do not get vaccinated against COVID-19

The Canadian province of Quebec is considering imposing a special tax on people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19, for “the consequences”Which represents the cost of caring for patients who have refused to receive vaccines for the provincial health system.

Quebec’s proposal, unveiled on Tuesday by the provincial prime minister, Francois Legault, comes just days after Canadian Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos declared that Canadian provinces have to consider making vaccination mandatory. against COVID-19.

Legault affirmed that the attitude of the anti-vaccines has “consequences”For the health system and it is not fair that the rest of Quebecers have to pay for their refusal.

The Québec prime minister added that the deniers “they put a very important load“In the health system and what is”normal“That the majority of the population demands a response to their attitude.

In recent weeks, the rapid increase in the number of COVID-19 cases due to the omicron variant has caused the saturation of the country’s health systems. In the past 40 days, since ómicron was detected in Canada, the country has counted more confirmed cases of COVID-19 than in all of 2020.

Pressure on the health system forced the province of Ontario, the most populous in Canada, on Tuesday to allow 300 health professionals with foreign degrees to work in hospitals.

This staff will add another 5,700 extra workers, including nursing students, medical students and other students from health programs, who will be hired in the coming weeks to try to ease the pressure.

In Quebec, 2,742 people were hospitalized for COVID-19 today, 188 more than on Monday. According to provincial authorities, although only 10% of the Quebec population is not vaccinated against the pandemic, these people represent 50% of patients admitted to hospitals.

The care needed to treat these patients has prompted some Montreal hospitals to begin postponing surgeries for people suffering from cancer or heart problems.

But the idea of ​​imposing a tax on the unvaccinated who do not have a medical exemption has already begun to be disputed by some sectors.

On Facebook, a group of vaccine-opposed Quebecers called Legault’s announcement a “psychological warfare” strategy and warned they would go to court if the Quebec government ultimately imposes the tax.