The plaintiffs include two rural family physicians, a Calgary anesthesiologist and a Calgary pediatric neurologist Four Alberta doctors are launching a lawsuit against
Alberta Health Services and its president in opposition to the mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for staff.
The four physicians — the plaintiffs — allege in a statement of claim that the mandatory immunization policy for AHS staff is “unethical and unlawful” and amounts to assault. They argue the policy goes against their Canadian Charter rights and freedoms as employees.
The plaintiffs include two rural family physicians, a Calgary anesthesiologist and a Calgary pediatric neurologist.
“Any medical procedure performed on a patient without their informed consent amounts to assault,” the statement of claim says.
The policy also amounts to “constructive dismissal” since the plaintiffs’ contracts are under threat of termination or unpaid suspension, according to the statement of claim, filed by Calgary lawyer Jeffery Rath. The lawsuit alleges that Dr. Verna Yiu, AHS president and CEO, Premier Jason Kenney and other government officials, have made “false statements” that it’s the unvaccinated who “are to blame for the pandemic and hospital overcrowding.”
It will be argued the plaintiffs’ professional reputations have been damaged and it has caused psychological harm.
The mandatory vaccination policy was announced by AHS in August requiring all of its employees, students, midwifery workers, volunteers and contractors to provide proof they had received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine by Oct. 31.
The deadline has been extended until Nov. 30 to give busy staff additional time to book their shots, explained Yiu last week.
Lorian Hardcastle, an associate professor in the faculty of law and Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary, said the claims about assault and informed consent seem “frivolous.”
“This isn’t a case where someone is being forcibly vaccinated. They’re being told that they either vaccinate or don’t work there,” said Hardcastle.
The COVID-19 vaccines are also not medical treatment without informed consent because there is information about the vaccines available for people to read up on, she said.
“Certainly, mandatory vaccination policy is something that has been discussed pretty extensively by employment and labour law lawyers. Most seem to be landing on the side of, given the public health crisis, these will probably stand up to the legal challenge,” said Hardcastle.
The Charter and employment right claims are worthy of judicial time and discussion but, she argued, a judge will likely uphold the vaccine mandate
What’s concerning about the lawsuit, said Hardcastle, is the language used and the “extreme” and scientifically untrue statements made.
“I think it’s unnecessarily sensationalist,” she said. “It may add fuel to the anti-vax fire. We may see some people who are opposed to vaccines, latch on to the language here.”
AHS said Monday they have not yet seen the statement of claim or lawsuit.
AHS said 94 per cent of its full-time and part-time staff, including 94 per cent of physicians, have already submitted their proof of having received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine.
“Over 9,000 physicians and 200 medical leaders work with AHS. This lawsuit represents less than 0.1 per cent of those physicians,” AHS said in a statement.
The health authority continues to be confident in the validity of the mandatory immunization policy, which AHS said is to ensure the safety of staff, physicians and patients.
“Health-care workers have an ethical and professional responsibility to protect others,” AHS said.
Hardcastle said she expects Canada will see many more of these kinds of lawsuits as mandatory vaccine policies pop up across the country.
“We’ll see them slowly percolate up to courts and as they do, we’ll have a better picture around the legality of vaccine mandates,” she said.
The plaintiffs’ lawyer’s office Rath & Company did not get back to Postmedia by press time.