"It is one of those tools that could allow parents who otherwise are not able to get their children to a clinic or have to work during the day, to do as they do with other vaccines and get their children vaccinated at school." Opposition education critic Carla Beck said Wednesday that requiring parents to be present for vaccinations in lieu of a consent form for those in grades 5 and 6 creates "barriers" to vaccination.
Opposition says policy creates 'barriers' The government has said there are many clinics available, including in the evening, for parents to take their children for vaccination. Last week, Minister of Labour Don Morgan said the government would consider extending its three-hour paid leave policy to parents, but said Tuesday it was no longer under consideration. In March, the provincial government amended legislation to allow for three hours of paid time off for a worker to get vaccinated. The Opposition has asked for parents to receive paid leave from work to get their child vaccinated. In Saskatchewan, children 13 to 17 are considered mature minors and can consent to being vaccinated without parental approval. begins vaccinating kids aged 5 to 11 in Regina, Saskatoon "We're a week into the program and that 23,000 doesn't include the last two days of vaccinations, so the number is going to be higher than that."ĭuncan said the province has vaccinated 20 per cent of children five to 11, which he said is the highest rate in Canada. That's why we're asking them to be there."Įducation Minister Dustin Duncan defended the policy when asked during question period on Wednesday, pointing to the 23,440 vaccinations done since children five to 11 became eligible. We don't want to ever give the perception we're giving the COVID-19 vaccine behind parents' backs. "We want to make sure the child is getting the vaccine and the parent is comfortable. "As opposed to other vaccines, this one has a lot of misinformation around it," Merriman said. On Tuesday, Health Minister Paul Merriman said the COVID-19 vaccine is unique because of the attention surrounding it. 22 informing them of a change in policy requiring all students to be accompanied by a guardian to receive their vaccination. The SHA sent out a letter to parents and guardians in Prince Albert on Nov. For other vaccines, students in these grades are able to bring a consent form and get their shot without a parent present. The Saskatchewan government is requiring parents to accompany their children aged five to 12 for their COVID-19 vaccination.įor students in grades 5 and 6, the policy is a departure from usual in-school vaccination processes.