Two more cases of measles have popped up in Manitoba. Some doctors in this proveince say this underlines the need for vaccinations.
It also has some wondering if the province could do more to increase the vaccination rates.
The new cases are a man in his 40s from the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority area, and a woman in her 30s from the Southern Health-Santé Sud area.
Health officials warn anyone who was at the Sobeys at 1500 Dakota St, on April 15 between noon and 5:00 p.m. could have been exposed.
Since a small outbreak in 1992 with 8 cases, only single cases have sporadically popped up, until now.
That has some Manitobans looking at other province's vaccination policies.
Like most Canadians, Shelley Mcgavock chooses to vaccinate her kids against many common illnesses. ”I just want to keep my kids as healthy as possible," she said.
"You know everything that's out there. You know you want the best for them, right.”
In Ontario, the government makes that decision for you. The province can suspend students who haven't had shots for six diseases, including measles.
Now it's added three more vaccines to the list - whooping cough, meningococcal and chicken pox.
Dr. Stan Lipnowski, a Winnipeg pediatrician and spokesperson for the Canadian Pediatrics Association, applauds the move. “We as pediatricians think all of Canada and all of the world should be protected from these preventable illness, so we applaud it and I’d love to see it here.
Public health officials in Manitoba encourage vaccinations but they're voluntary and the health minister says there's no plans to change that.
Still, public health officials say vaccination rates in Manitoba remain high.
“To make that mandatory, you're basically taking away people's right to make their own choices, and generally with health care, we leave it up to individuals to make those choices themselves,” said chief provincial public health officer Dr. Michael Routledge.
Ontario parents can apply for an exemption on religious or philosophical grounds.
- With a report by Alesia Fieldberg
