Tag Archives: oceania

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Quebec looks to introduce health tax on the unvaccinated

A province in Canada is looking to introduce a health tax to unvaccinated residents due to the pressure they place on the health system.

Professor Nancy Baxter told Today 90 per cent of Quebec, which is Canada's second-most populous province, is fully vaccinated and the health tax would be "fair" to those who chose to get vaccinated.

"It is not fair to the 90 per cent that we're kind of being paralysed and our health care system is being totally clogged up by the 10 per cent that won't get vaccinated," she said.

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Signage at the Decarie Square Covid-19 vaccination site in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. Members of the armed services have been deployed in the province since January 3 to help with third dose vaccination efforts as hospitalizations rise. Photographer: Graham Hughes/Bloomberg

"What they want to do is to kind of levy a tax on people who are unvaccinated.

"So it probably happened through your tax or they send a bill or withhold money from your tax returns."

Professor Baxter, a Canadian herself, said the community still wants the unvaccinated to receive health care however introducing the levy would be more "fair".

READ MORE: Almost 1000 NSW health workers stood down or quit after refusing to get vaccinated

Quebec looks to introduce health tax on the unvaccinated.

The health tax has not yet been introduced and must first pass through the Canadian courts.

Professor Baxter added this health tax would probably not work here in Australia.

"So I don't know if this would actually be something that would work in Australia," she said.

READ MORE: Victoria's COVID-19 hospitalisations pass 1000 as number of new cases drops

Residents wait in the observation area after receiving a Covid-19 vaccine at the Decarie Square vaccination site in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. Members of the armed services have been deployed in the province since January 3 to help with third dose vaccination efforts as hospitalizations rise. Photographer: Graham Hughes/Bloomberg

"Particularly because Quebec is all of a public system. There is no private system."

"Whereas it's a different health care system here."

She said, instead, the government should reveal the burden the unvaccinated are placing on the health system.

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Almost 1000 NSW health workers stood down after refusing vaccine

Almost 1000 New South Wales health care workers have been stood down or quit because they refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

NSW Health confirmed 995 of its 170,000 workforce have resigned or been sacked after refusing the vaccine.

This includes 325 people who have resigned and 670 who were stood down by NSW Health due to their vaccination position.

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Staff prepare to collect samples at a drive-through COVID-19 testing clinic at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia.

"NSW Health can advise that of its entire workforce of about 170,000 people, approximately 0.2 per cent (325) have resigned due to their vaccination position as of 23 December 2021," a NSW Health spokesperson said.

"Additionally, approximately 670 people (0.4 per cent) have now ceased employment with NSW Health due to their position in relation to the COVID-19 vaccine."

"These former employees were a mix of clinical and non-clinical staff."

"The importance of having our workforce vaccinated has never been more evident than during the current difficulties presented by the Omicron variant, particularly with the high number of COVID-19 cases in the community and subsequent presentations and admissions to our hospitals."

Currently, there are also about 6000 health workers who are in isolation due to COVID-19 exposure.

This comes despite National Cabinet agreeing to extend the workers who are exempt from close contact restrictions.

Health care workers now only need to obtain a negative rapid antigen test result before returning to work.

This is aimed to assist the pressure plaguing the health system and to stop supply chain disruptions in other industries.

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An ambulance at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney

The health system is facing extreme pressure as hospitalisations and ICU admissions continue to rise in the state's surging Omicron wave.

Yesterday, there were 2525 people in hospital, 184 of whom are in intensive care.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said yesterday in terms of hospitalisations and ICU admissions, the health system was outstripping even the most optimistic modelling.

"So that is encouraging, reassuring and pleasing," he said.

Mr Perrottet said the health system was nonetheless under pressure.

"It is going to be a difficult few weeks ahead but the tracking that we are releasing today is very reassuring and encouraging given where we sit today in in the pandemic."

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New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet

NSW recorded 63,018 COVID-19 cases yesterday and 29 deaths.

Of the positive cases, 37,938 were from rapid antigen tests that NSW Health said included 24,329 results from the past seven days.