Quebecers wanting to eat at a restaurant, go out to a bar, go to a gym or attend a festival will have to present a vaccination passport from September 1, announced Tuesday the Minister of Health of this province, Christian Dubé.
Read also: Covid-19: Quebec will implement a vaccine passport
"
Our objective with the passport is not to go back towards a generalized reconfinement and, at the same time, to avoid overloading our hospitals
", he affirmed during a press conference.
The first province in the country to do so
Quebec is the first Canadian province to implement the vaccination passport, which will be necessary for anyone who wishes "to
have access to high traffic public events (clientele) and activities with a high rate of socialization contact
".
The provincial government is to clarify in the coming weeks which specific public places will have the obligation to require the vaccination passport, which will be required in paper or electronic format through a free application.
A fourth wave of Covid-19 in Quebec is, according to the minister, “
inevitable
” because of the Delta variant, “
more dangerous and more contagious
”.
Quebec, the second most populous province in Canada after Ontario, recorded 234 new cases of Covid-19 in 24 hours on Tuesday.
Some 84% of Quebecers have received a first dose of vaccine and 70% are fully vaccinated.
Pilot projects tested on Wednesday
New York City, in the United States, was the first American city to announce last week the introduction of this type of passport for access to public places.
Pilot projects will be launched Wednesday in collaboration with Quebec companies to test the mobile application and prepare for the launch of the vaccine passport in three weeks.
"
Even if we are heading towards one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, that leaves many people unvaccinated in Quebec,
" said Christian Dubé, saying he fears a sharp resurgence of the pandemic in the fall. To date, the Delta variant is responsible for a third of Covid-19 cases in Quebec but the minister expects it to increase to 50% "
in the coming weeks
".
