The organization representing Alberta doctors is joining health-care unions in raising concerns over Premier Danielle Smith’s decision to charge most Albertans for a COVID-19 vaccination this fall.

Dr. Shelley Duggan, president of the Alberta Medical Association, says the policy leaves behind many seniors and health-care workers, and doesn’t even mention pregnant individuals, First Nations, Inuit, Métis or members of other racialized groups.

The association head noted that goes against recommendations from Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization.

“Being unclear about policy and creating barriers to vaccination for the most high-need groups are counterproductive measures,” Duggan said in a statement.

“We need a structured, substantial strategy, one that makes it as easy as possible for those who need vaccine the most to get it.”

Smith has said the policy is about preventing wastage, recovering costs, and targeting COVID vaccinations to those who need them the most.

Her United Conservative Party government will still pay for some to get the shot, including those who have compromised immune systems or are on social programs. Seniors in a congregate setting will also be covered, but those 65 years or older who are living independently will need to pay.

The government has said it hasn’t yet determined how much Albertans would pay, but it has estimated the cost to procure each shot is $110.

Local pharmacies will no longer be given a supply of COVID-19 shots, which will only be available through public health clinics through a phased delivery in the fall. The government has said the new approach will help it better know what to order in coming years.

On Monday, the United Nurses of Alberta and the Health Sciences Association of Alberta called for the government to reverse course and ensure vaccines are widely available, including for health-care workers.

They said staff should not be expected to put themselves in harm’s way without protection, and said barriers to vaccination will put patients and the health-care system at risk.

Last week, Smith said $135 million got “flushed down the drain” last year with doses wasted in part because Albertans are increasingly choosing to not take them.

“I think it’s because it doesn’t work particularly well, if you want the truth,” Smith said.

Just under 14 per cent of Alberta’s 4.8 million residents got vaccinated for the virus last season.

“It’s those that are healthy, that choose to do it because they’ve talked to their doctors, those are the ones that will have a little bit lesser priority,” she said.

She has pointed to higher influenza vaccination rates, pegged at 21 per cent last year, and has suggested that COVID vaccines don’t match the effectiveness of others, including for the measles.

Duggan said she appreciates that the premier and Primary and Preventative Health Services Minister Adriana LaGrange have made recent comments encouraging measles vaccination.

“They should be saying so every time they stand up in front of Albertans. With every new infection, it’s more apparent that we need strong, structured and unwavering support for public health measures,” said Duggan.

“Right now, we need everyone to receive the same simple message: measles vaccine is safe and it works to prevent measles.”

Opposition NDP health critic Sarah Hoffman has accused Smith’s government of undermining its own public vaccination efforts, and has called the new COVID vaccine policy dangerous, callous, and anti-science.

Public health-care experts say the province’s new COVID-19 policy will create more barriers to getting vaccinated and also lead to higher costs as more people develop severe complications.

Public health experts worry about Alberta lacking a permanent chief medical officer of health

Global News spoke with two public health experts on Tuesday who said they are concerned by the fact that Alberta has still not hired a permanent chief medical officer of health since firing Dr. Deena Hinshaw in 2022, who Premier Danielle Smith accused of giving “bad advice” to Alberta Health Services.

Dr. Mark Joffe assumed the role of interim CMOH until this spring when his contract expired and Dr. Sunil Sookram took over the role on an interim basis.

Dr. James Talbot, who once served as Alberta’s CMOH, said while he has respect for the doctors taking on the role on an interim basis, the role is highly specialized and needs to be filled by someone with the proper credentials.

“I think it’s a public health crisis,” he said. “The fact that Alberta cannot attract a properly trained, experienced, knowledgeable chief medical officer of health is a threat to the health of the people in the province.”

Talbot said he worries that qualified doctors may be hesitant to apply to become Alberta’s next CMOH because they may fear political interference from government.

“As recently as this weekend, we had the premier casting doubt on whether the COVID(-19) vaccine is effective or not,” he said. “Not only is what she is saying about the safety of the vaccines not true, but worse than that, her own ministry has the data to prove that’s not true.

“If you’re in public health, the last thing you want to do is work for a government for whom science does not mean anything. … If you’re going to make decisions on behalf of 4.5 million people, do you want to do it on the basis of the number of clicks an opinion has on the web, do you want to do it on the basis of what somebody who hosts a podcast says, or do you want to rely on what science has said you can rely on?”

Dr. Louis Francescutti, a professor of public health at the University of Alberta who is also an emergency physician, said he too has a lot of respect for the doctors filling in as Alberta’s CMOH on a temporary basis, but he believes they do not have the qualifications needed to serve in what is “probably the most important position in the province.”

“Just because you’re a doctor, it doesn’t mean you’re qualified to be the chief medical officer of health,” he explained. “It’s the analogy of saying, ‘I’m a pilot.’ ‘OK, what do you fly?’ ‘Cessnas.’ ‘That’s great, but you can’t go in the cockpit of a Boeing Dreamliner and start flying that just because you’re a pilot.’

“I wouldn’t get in that plane.”

Francescutti said he is not surprised that so many Albertans chose not to get their COVID-19 vaccine shots last year, but added he believes an effective CMOH who is supported by the provincial government would be able to help address the low uptake.

“You’ve got to remember, people are fatigued with COVID,” he said. “They don’t want to hear the word. They think it’s disappeared. …. (But) it’s still killing people.

“If there is no sense of public urgency or trust, the public is going to take the path of least resistance, which is not get immunized.”

Talbot said he hopes Albertans will demand improvements to public health approaches in the province.

“I think at some point the community needs to step up and say, ‘Our health and the health of our children is important.'”

In an interview with Global News on Tuesday, LaGrange was asked about some of the concerns raised about Alberta still not having a permanent CMOH since Hinshaw’s departure and about the province’s approach to public health.

“We are diligently looking for a new CMOH for the province,” she said, adding that Sookram has been doing an excellent job in the interim. “We are going to continue to make sure that we have a strong public health system, that our public health nurses continue to go out and speak with Albertans and raise the alarm on issues as they have done with the measles.

“We make decisions based on evidence and the best science that is available to us at the time that we make those decisions. I really believe that Albertans recognize that.”

LaGrange noted that over 85 per cent of Albertans chose not to get the COVID-19 vaccine last year, and that the government wants to ensure the vaccine is available to Albertans who want it but that it does not want to see large amounts of the vaccine go unused again.

“I don’t know why they didn’t choose to receive it, but that was a choice that they made,” she said. “What we need to do as a government is to continue to provide information to Albertans so that they can make the most informed choices for themselves and their families.”

LaGrange added that Albertans should continue to consult with their primary care providers when they make personal decisions about their health or their family members’ health.

–with files from Global News’ Phil Heidenreich and Sarah Komadina

2:18 Majority of Albertans to pay for COVID-19 vaccine