Province oddly silent on disturbingly low COVID vax rates

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This article was published 14/01/2025 (637 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

COVID-19 vaccination rates in Manitoba continue to fall, even though more than 1,000 people infected with the virus were hospitalized this season and nearly 200 died.

Whatever the reason — COVID fatigue, a belief that getting the shot is no longer needed, people think they’re too busy — fewer Manitobans are getting vaccinated against the virus compared to last year and the year before.

It’s leading to severe illness, contributing to hospital overcrowding and it’s costing lives.

So why isn’t the province doing more to promote the benefits of getting vaxxed against COVID-19, as well as the flu, given the obvious benefits? That’s something government needs to answer.

According to the latest provincial respiratory virus surveillance report, only 15.5 per cent of Manitobans have received the COVID-19 shot this season.

As expected, take-up is highest among the elderly. Just over 48 per cent of Manitobans aged 65 and older got the COVID-19 vaccine this season, as of Jan. 4.

The numbers drop considerably for those aged 50-64 at 18.6 per cent. Only 6.8 per cent of Manitobans aged 18-49 got the shot. For school-aged children — five to 17 years old — it’s even worse: 4.9 per cent.

The province officially kicked off its flu and COVID-19 vaccination program in October with an “every vaccine counts” advertising campaign. It appeared public health officials were poised to mount an aggressive public-awareness campaign. But then it faded.

“While health-care workers take care of our most vulnerable and our sickest Manitobans, it is our job, each and every one of us, to make sure that we are doing everything that we can to protect ourselves, our loved ones and communities from illness this season,” Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara said at an October news conference.

That means getting vaccinated, washing your hands frequently and staying home when sick, the minister said.

Strong words. But that messaging was not sustained.

Nearly three months later, the vaccination numbers have been disappointing. At 15.5 per cent overall for COVID-19, it’s slightly below take-up for this time last year, 19.1 per cent. It was 20.4 per cent during the entire 2023-2024 respiratory-illness season, which was down from 25 per cent in 2022-2023.

The numbers are slightly better for flu shots, at 22.2 per cent overall, but still disappointingly low (although similar to past years). Among those aged 65 and over, 57.2 got the shot this season.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people with COVID-19 have been admitted to hospital this season. Between Aug. 23 and Jan. 4 (the current respiratory-illness season, as defined by the province), there have been 1,012 hospital admissions associated with COVID-19. That’s four times the number associated with the flu, 251.

There have also been 10 times more COVID-19 deaths this season (198) compared with the flu (19).

What’s disappointing is that the province isn’t doing more to promote vaccines for both, even though they are proven to be effective at preventing serious illness and death. There is some advertising on billboards and elsewhere urging people to get the shots, but it’s a pretty weak campaign. There should be far more, including updated numbers on hospitalizations, deaths and the percentage of those patients who were vaccinated.

Chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said in October when the province launched this season’s advertising campaign that none of the patients admitted to the intensive care unit for influenza-related illness last year were vaccinated. He called that a “missed opportunity to protect Manitobans.”

That is powerful, evidence-based information that should be shared more widely and more frequently with Manitobans, not only for the flu but also for COVID-19. People need to know that the vaccines help prevent serious illness, death and reduce hospitalizations (which would also alleviate hospital congestion and bring down emergency room wait times).

That evidence-based messaging is especially important, given the rise of anti-science propaganda that continues to circulate in society.

Considering how fast and easy it is to get both shots, not rolling out a more aggressive advertising and public-awareness campaign is also a “missed opportunity to protect Manitobans.”

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It takes 15-20 minutes to get both shots. They’re free and they’re widely available at clinics, doctors’ offices and pharmacies. The benefits are so significant for such little effort.

Getting both shots is not just about protecting yourself. It’s about helping reduce the spread of the virus to protect others, including the elderly and people in high-risk groups.

No one is under the illusion that uptake for COVID-19 shots will return to pandemic levels (where some 80 per cent of people got the shots). But 15.5 per cent is a dismal record.

Surely we can do better.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca

Tom Brodbeck
Columnist

Tom Brodbeck is an award-winning author and columnist with over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom.

Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press’s editing team reviews Tom’s columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press’s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.