The Office of the Official Opposition is calling on government to reconsider their decision to vaccinate the 16-to-24-year-olds before older segments of the population.

“The Federal Government recently announced that New Brunswick should be receiving enough doses of Covid-19 vaccines for everyone by July. Now the responsibility is on the Higgs government to execute their vaccination rollout plan” says Liberal Leader Roger Melanson.  “If there is one thing we have always known about this virus, is that older people are more vulnerable to experiencing life threatening complications. Many are rightfully expressing concern that people aged 16 to 24 years old are scheduled to be vaccinated before people in their sixties.”

The Higgs government has stated that they are prioritizing this group due to their higher transmission rates.

“While I understand the concept of vaccinating those who are more likely to spread the virus, the science is still unclear on whether an immunized person can or cannot still transmit the virus. Saying that immunizing an age group with high transmission rates will help stop the spread of the virus seems like a big assumption to make” says Melanson. “However, the science is very clear that vaccination is a safe and effective way of protecting vulnerable populations from becoming ill.”

As the risk of experiencing negative consequences increases significantly with age, Roger Melanson wonders why the Higgs Government didn’t follow the recommendations of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization. “The National Advisory Committee on Immunization has recommended prioritizing the roll-out of vaccinations by age groups and underlying conditions. I will definitely raise this issue at this week all-Party Covid Committee,” stated Roger Melanson.