Brandon Sun By: Kimberley Kielley Save to Read Later
All First Nations, Métis or Inuit 18 years and older are now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine the province announced during Monday’s press conference.
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All First Nations, Métis or Inuit 18 years and older are now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine the province announced during Monday’s press conference. People who self-identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit will be able to access the vaccine, without needing to provide any type of proof, said Dr. Marcia Anderson, public health lead for the First Nations Pandemic Response Co-ordination Team.
At this time, including Métis and Inuit people in this eligibility acknowledges the response to the impacts of colonization on all Indigenous people in Canada, Anderson said. The urban Indigenous clinics, which are used to operating in status-blind ways, will be able to provide high-quality culture-based equitable services to First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples.
Anyone who self-identifies as First Nations, Métis or Inuit will be able to get a vaccine without being asked to provide further proof, Anderson said. In February, when the province began its rollout of the vaccine to the general population, Anderson had said they may at some point ask for some form of proof to prevent people falsely claiming to be Indigenous in order to get the vaccine.