Vaccine distribution to First Nations still lacks safeguards

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This article was published 12/03/2021 (1837 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba government has not put in safeguards to prevent people from lying about being First Nations in order to jump the queue for a COVID-19 vaccine, leaving it up to doctors and pharmacists to take patients at their word.

First Nations people have a shorter lifespan than the general population and have been shown to have more severe outcomes and a higher death rate from COVID-19. As a result, Manitoba has offered vaccines to First Nations people who are 60 years of age or older, while the list of those eligible in the general population includes people who are 80 years of age or older.

Dr. Marcia Anderson, an Indigenous medical officer of health, announced the policy Feb. 24, and said she knew people would try to lie in order to get the vaccine.

“Too often we see the ‘pretendian’ phenomena, where people falsely identify as First Nations, or claim distant or tenuous ancestral connections for personal gain,” Anderson said at the time.

Not all First Nations people have Indian Act status. For example, status has been stripped from the descendants of women who married non-Indigenous men, and from men who joined the army.

That’s why Anderson announced a process would be launched in the coming weeks to verify when someone is First Nations.

She said people will be asked for their Indian status number, and those without one will be asked for proof, such as having an immediate First Nations relative who does have a status number.

Two weeks later, nothing is in place.

On Thursday, doctors and pharmacists started booking appointments for a small number of AstraZeneca shots for patients with certain severe medical conditions. People who identify as First Nations can qualify from age 30 and up, compared with age 50 for the rest of the population.

Ryan Chan, the head of Exchange District Pharmacy, said he’s asking patients to self-identify on a form that indicates they’re answering questions truthfully.

“There’s no direction on verifying the (Indian Act) status,” said Chan, who did not criticize the province as he explained the process in an interview.

“If they check off the First Nations box, they’re First Nations,” he said.

“We’re basing the information on what they tell us. The government didn’t tell us to clarify, or verify with actual proof.”

Manitoba Health confirmed it has not issued any directive.

“We anticipate self-declaration (display of status card) will be the process used by clinics and pharmacies,” a spokesman wrote.

The province confirmed there is still no process to weed out people who falsely identify as First Nations to get a shot at a vaccination super-site.

The First Nations pandemic team did not have a response on where that process stands, or who would be in charge. The provincial government said it’s not yet set up.

“The escalation screening process will be established by the First Nation partners. This is currently ongoing,” the spokesman wrote.

The province does not want doctors guessing based on skin tone.

“Racist actions and behaviour are not tolerated. If an individual experiences this, they are strongly urged to file a complaint with Doctors Manitoba or College of Pharmacists of Manitoba,” a spokesman wrote.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca