Sask. premier says COVID-19 vaccination 'will remain a choice'
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe urged people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, but says doing so “will remain a choice” within the province.
However, Moe delivered a stern message Friday morning to residents who choose not to get vaccinated.
"By choosing not to get vaccinated you are choosing to put yourself at increased risk, yes, of getting COVID and significantly increased risk of experiencing severe outcomes from this virus, but your decision to not get vaccinated is no longer just impacting yourself," he said at a news conference in Saskatoon.
"By choosing to not get vaccinated you are increasing the risk to those who don't have a choice. For example, our children under the age of 12.
"And by choosing to not get vaccinated, you are now placing tremendous strain on our health-care system, filling up our ICU beds and you are burdening many of our health-care workers in this province."
Moe, Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Saqib Shahab and Saskatchewan Health Authority CEO Scott Livingstone spoke at the Saskatoon Cabinet Office to provide an update on the province's response to COVID-19.
Moe said that while he would like to see each eligible person in Saskatchewan get vaccinated, he also believes vaccination is a choice - and that creating two classes of citizens based on vaccination status would be a difficult and divisive path for a government to take.
"So in Saskatchewan it will remain a choice, but you need to also fully understand the serious potential consequences for yourself and for our health system if you choose not to get vaccinated."
On Friday the province enacted a mandatory self-isolation order, which states that anyone who receives a positive COVID-19 test must self-isolate for 10 days.
The government and the Saskatchewan Health Authority are also reducing non-critical or elective health-care services to expand the surge capacity of the health system.
The SHA is also working to renew an agreement with health-care provider unions that will allow for more flexibility and mobility for health-care workers to move around to areas experiencing surges in capacity pressures.
Testing and contract tracing efforts are also being expanded across the province.
Do you have a story idea or news tip? Email us.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.