MONTREAL, Canada (AFP) — The Canadian province of Quebec, struggling to control the Omicron variant, will impose a new health tax in the coming weeks on those who are not vaccinated against Covid-19.
“We are working on a health contribution for all the adults who are refusing to get vaccinated” because they represent a “financial burden for all Quebecois,” said Quebec Premier Francois Legault.
The 10 percent of Quebecois who have not yet received any vaccine doses must not “harm” the 90 percent who have, he said.
“It is not on all Quebecois to pay for that,” he said during a press conference, specifying that the government of the French-speaking province wanted the tax to represent a “significant amount”.
“I feel this discontent with regard to the unvaccinated minority which, all things considered, clogs our hospitals,” he said.
The Quebec premier explained that these 10 percent of unvaccinated adults represent 50 percent of people in intensive care, calling it a “shocking” situation.
He said that those who are unvaccinated for medical reasons will be exempt from the move.
In an attempt to stem the new wave, Quebec announced on December 30 the return of certain restrictions, including a 10 pm curfew and a ban on private gatherings.
In total, 2,742 people with Covid are hospitalized and some 255 people are in intensive care in Quebec, which has about 8 million inhabitants.
Hospitalizations also continue to increase in neighboring province Ontario, the most populous in Canada, with 3,220 people hospitalized and 477 people in intensive care.
© Agence France-Presse