The federal government should come up with a plan to roll COVID-19 vaccines out in Indigenous communities immediately, NDP health critic Don Davies says.
Speaking to a virtual news conference Monday, Davies said the federal government has deferred to the provinces to determine who will be vaccinated first but Indigenous health falls squarely in federal jurisdiction.
"This is a federal responsibility," he said.
The New Democratic Party first began raising problems with the blood ban in 2008, and have consistently campaigned against it. In October, their health critic Don Davies put the question to Rob Oliphant, a Liberal MP who is, himself, gay and therefore banned from donating.
The ban, “is not based on science but on stereotype,” Davies argued. “We allow a sexually promiscuous heterosexual man who engages in dangerous activities to donate blood, but two gay men in a loving, stable, monogamous relationship are not allowed.” He called that the “most base stigmatization.”
“It’s Dec. 12 and we don’t have the data management system,” NDP health critic Don Davies said over the weekend. He said that situation is “concerning, maybe even alarming.”
Mr. Davies said it should not have been news to the Trudeau government that Canada would need an extensive information technology solution to manage the vaccine rollout – everything from its delivery into Canada, to its distribution to points across the country, monitoring of its storage and shelf life, and analyzing the immunity of the population at large.
The U.S. government appointed a military general last May to head up distribution, Davies said. The Liberals didn’t do so until last week. The U.S. has also taken possession of Pfizer vaccine even though it’s not yet been approved so it will be ready to go the moment approval might come. “Canada has not done that,” Davies said. “Shouldn’t it be receiving the Pfizer vaccine pending Health Canada approval?”
In the rough world of partisan politics, it’s best for his NDP if the Liberals prove incompetent, Davies said, but this is one issue where he hopes they do not fail.
“Canadians do want them to succeed. We all want them to.”
NDP Health Critic Don Davies noted that Bill C-213 follows the recommendations set out in the government's own Hoskins' Report and has laid out the necessary criteria for provinces to receive funding under the program.
"According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, this plan would make pharmacare available to all Canadians, create many efficiencies and save more than $4.2 billion in prescription costs every year,” said Davies.
