Question Period Note: VACCINATION – GENERAL

In Canada, vaccination is a shared responsibility among the federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) governments. The majority of costs are borne by the provinces and territories (PTs), who are responsible for the planning and delivery of vaccination programs. Vaccines are not covered by the Canada Health Act, and are therefore provided as supplementary services at the discretion of PTs.

Key Messages
• The Government of Canada recognizes the importance of vaccination against infectious diseases for the health and safety of Canadians.
• We are reminding Canadians to keep their vaccines up to date and to check with their healthcare provider or local health unit for details on vaccination clinics operating during this time.
• We are working to address vaccine hesitancy in Canada and to increase vaccine acceptance and uptake to protect the health of Canadians.
If Pressed
• While routine (non-COVID-19 vaccines) are not mandatory in any jurisdiction in Canada, the Government of Canada is committed to vaccination as a safe and effective public health measure that prevents disease and disability.

Federal Role
The federal government has a role in vaccine regulatory approval, vaccine safety, monitoring, and national surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) and adverse events following immunization. Its role also includes coordinating the bulk purchasing of vaccines for all jurisdictions and national leadership on the development of evidence-based public health recommendations and educational materials on the importance of vaccination.

Surveillance and Coverage Surveys
To help ensure the ongoing health and safety of Canadians, particularly children, immunocompromised (weakened immune system) individuals, and the elderly, high levels of vaccination coverage for VPDs are required. Vaccination coverage goals are 95% for infants and children, 90% for adolescents, and 80-90% for adults depending on the VPD. FPT vaccination coverage goals and VPD targets were updated in December 2017, and Canada will monitor its progress against these goals. The Childhood National Immunization Coverage Survey (2017) showed that while vaccination coverage in Canada is good, Canada is not reaching national coverage goals. For example, only 90% of children received the measles vaccine by age 2, below the 95% coverage goal.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, a decrease in vaccination coverage is being reported by the PTs due to the closure of some primary care offices as well as healthcare workers being mobilized to respond to COVID-19. The Government of Canada is monitoring the situation closely.

Vaccine Hesitancy
The World Health Organization (WHO) identified vaccine hesitancy as one of 10 threats to global health in 2019, threatening to reverse the progress that has been made in addressing vaccine preventable diseases. The Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC) Immunization Partnership Fund, is a grants and contributions program intended to promote vaccines and improve vaccination coverage. In response to Canada’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts, in September 2020, the Government of Canada committed an additional $30.25 million over 2.5 years (2020-2023) to renew and expand efforts to increase vaccine acceptance and uptake among Canadians and reduce vaccine preventable disease. As of September 2021, 17 new projects have been announced to advance community-based vaccine confidence and uptake efforts.

Vaccine Recommendations
PHAC provides recommendations on the use of vaccines in Canada for public health programs based on advice from its external advisory body, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization. This group of experts provides technical/scientific analysis and recommendations on new and existing vaccines, which now include programmatic considerations such as economics and ethics. PTs use these recommendations to assist in planning their vaccination programs.

Vaccine Safety
Health Canada conducts rigorous scientific review and testing of vaccines to assess their quality, safety, and efficacy before they are approved for use in Canada. Once a vaccine is authorized for use in Canada, vaccine safety is monitored to detect and respond to adverse events.

Key Facts
• Vaccination remains one of the most effective public health measures to protect Canadians against vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs), such as measles, mumps and tetanus. VPDs remain a public health concern as they can be transmitted among susceptible people such as children, individuals with a weakened immune system, the elderly, and those who do not have up-to-date vaccinations. In the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to focus efforts on re-establishing routine immunization programs to protect Canadians from VPDs.