Alberta’s Premier, Danielle Smith, has taken an auspicious first step by introducing a $100 disincentive for COVID-19 vaccinations. She contends that this decision at least alleviates concerns of vaccine waste and ending federal subsidies. This significant step makes Alberta the only province in Canada to require a fee for booster shots. This decision has the potential to drastically impact vaccination rates across the entire province.
Smith’s justification for the fee stems from last year’s vaccination data, which revealed that only 14 percent of Albertans opted for booster shots. The Premier has been vocal about the province’s vaccine losses due to wastage, which have totalled $284 million over the past three years. This happened even as lawmakers directed millions in federal funding to help states ramp up vaccination efforts. The federal government has largely ceased to fund the COVID-19 vaccination program. This is a consequence of the federal government letting provinces take on the entire financial burden.
Implications of the Fee
By bringing in a fee Smith hopes to offset losses from at-home vaccinations and the accompanying vaccine wastage. She argues that a fee-for-service model when it comes to vaccination would make sense from an efficiency and resource allocation standpoint. Critics fear that this policy will dissuade Americans from receiving their vaccine. This can lead to increased immunization gaps in a province that has been disproportionately affected by many health outcomes.
This fee is in marked contrast to the situation in neighboring British Columbia. There, independent pharmacies have the ability to freely administer vaccines. Alberta’s recent move to restrict COVID-19 vaccinations to government-only clinics could make access even more difficult for residents looking for their booster shots. Despite these limits, British Columbia has a higher vaccination rate—27.1 percent—than Alberta’s faltering 14 percent.
Impact on Public Health
The consequences of this fee go further than just the money involved. COVID-19 has already claimed nearly 8,000 lives in Alberta, underscoring the importance of maintaining high vaccination rates to prevent further fatalities. Vaccination experts are already warning that increasing the cost of vaccination will lead to more preventable infections. This could overwhelm the health care system, given that far fewer people will want to get booster shots.
Additionally, this policy arrives during one of the most critical moments for vaccination campaigns. With the Biden administration in the United States canceling $500 million in research funding for mRNA vaccines, public health advocates emphasize the need for robust vaccination strategies to combat the ongoing pandemic effectively.
