Statement by Mayor Eisenberger on mandatory COVID-19 vaccines and vaccine passport program
HAMILTON, ON - Hamilton City Council is calling on the provincial and federal governments to implement stricter measures against COVID-19, including mandatory vaccines and a vaccine passport.
Council approved a motion advocating for the measures directly with the Prime Minister, Federal Minister of Health, Premier of Ontario, Ontario Minister of Health and the Ontario Attorney General.
A Vaccine Passport Program would be used to regulate entry into certain settings that pose a high risk for virus transmission including indoor dining, bars, gyms, cultural and sports events, schools, universities, congregate settings, and workplaces. The program would also assist in the re-opening of communities across our province and can serve as a verifiable, secure, standardized, accessible and portable record of immunization.
The implementation of mandatory vaccinations would help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our community, which currently has the highest COVID-19 case rate in the province. One in five residents has not yet received their first vaccine dose. In the meantime, anyone in our community who has not yet received their vaccination is asked to please do so now.
It is imperative all levels of government work together to stop the spread of COVID-19 and its Delta variant and I look forward to the provincial and federal governments taking decisive actions now to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in our communities, to reserve healthcare and hospital capacity and to protect our vulnerable populations.