Ottawa business leaders, mayor welcome Ontario vaccine passport

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Ottawa business leaders are welcoming the proof-of-vaccination requirements announced by Premier Doug Ford on Wednesday despite having concerns about how establishments will handle checking customers’ COVID-19 immunization status.

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Still, they expressed relief that a provincially mandated system would put the same kinds of businesses on equal footing rather than leaving it up to them to create their own vaccination-checking policies.

Sueling Ching, president and CEO of the Ottawa Board of Trade, said the organization preferred a national proof-of-vaccination system, but it was happy to see the Ontario government start one, especially with the Quebec government launching its own vaccine passport on Wednesday.

Businesses have been concerned about the different vaccination requirements between Ottawa and Gatineau. Ching said there had even been discussions in recent weeks about possibility of the City of Ottawa creating its own proof-of-vaccination system if the Ontario government didn’t step up.

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“We were thinking about doing something that could hold us over because our businesses and organizations were being forced to do it on their own and we just know (small and medium size businesses) can’t do it,” Ching said.

Starting Sept. 22, people in Ontario 12 years old and older will need to show their vaccine receipts to prove they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before entering several “high risk” indoor settings, such as restaurants, bars, gyms, conference centres and sporting events. The receipts can be downloaded from the province’s website. The province says a scannable digital code that can be stored on mobile phones will be available Oct. 22.

Some businesses won’t require proof-of-vaccination, including grocery stores and places that administer medical care or provide medical supplies.

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Mayor Jim Watson and health board chair Keith Egli, who both earlier this week called on Ford to implement a proof-of-vaccination program in Ontario to better align with Quebec requirements, supported the Ontario government’s announcement on Wednesday.

“This program will help prevent further economic and social disruptions, particularly as we see an increase in cases related to the Delta variant,” a written statement from the mayor’s office said.

At the same time, Ching said businesses were concerned about how customers would react to having to showing proof of vaccination. Businesses are “just asking the public in general to be kind,” Ching said.

Mark Kaluski, chair of the Ottawa Coalition of BIAs, says anything that helps consumer confidence will be a boost for local businesses.

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While he was trying to understand how some establishments were exempt from proof-of-vaccination rules, Kaluski said coalition members would be relieved that government was setting the rules rather than leaving it up to individual businesses to come up with vaccination policies for customers.

But businesses could face challenges checking people’s vaccination status, especially when digital vaccine receipts roll out, requiring a way to scan the codes. Merchants have already incurred huge costs during the pandemic and can’t afford new expenses, he added.

“I’m assuming that the government is going to help the small businesses,” Kaluski said. “That’s something we’re going to be pushing for.”

The provincial rules don’t force businesses, like restaurants, to require staff to be vaccinated.

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During a media conference, Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s chief medial officer of health, said any business could introduce an immunization policy for employees. He said there was already a level of protection for workers because they should be screening for COVID-19 symptoms, plus businesses should have infection prevention and control equipment for staff.

Kaluski said he had heard about Ottawa business owners avoiding the topic of vaccinations for staff beyond making a polite ask. The issue of COVID-19 vaccinations in workplaces is a “minefield” that many small business owners don’t know how to navigate, he said.

jwilling@postmedia.com

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