Canada's Top Doc Gave Her Recommendation On If Vaccine Mandates Will Include Kids Under 12
Dr. Theresa Tam said Canada is "one of the first countries that have been privileged" to get doses for kids.
The country's top doctor has revealed where the government stands on the vaccine mandate in Canada being applied to kids that are younger than 12 years old.
During a conference about the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine being approved for kids 5 to 11 years old on November 19, Dr. Theresa Tam was asked to give her recommendation on if federal vaccine mandates like the one for travel would apply to that age group now.
The top doctor said that the government's stance is that kids in that age group shouldn't be included in mandates at this point.
"The vaccine program is just rolling out and there's very little access anywhere else in the world to pediatric vaccines. We're one of the first countries that have been privileged, I would say, in getting these pediatric doses," Tam said.
She also noted that for travel specifically, she doesn't expect that the government will require kids aged 5 to 11 to be fully vaccinated right now.
However, she did mention that these policies will be examined as time goes on.
That same day, the federal government announced that the test requirements for re-entry to Canada are being dropped for some travellers as of November 30, 2021, and the exemption also applies to accompanying children under 12 years old.
Health Canada has a robust website with all the latest information on COVID-19 vaccines and can answer any questions you may have.