Alberta Scientists Urge Government to Reject Controversial Pandemic Response Report

Dozens of Alberta scientists, doctors, and researchers have penned an open letter calling on the Alberta government to reject the recommendations contained in its recently released pandemic response report.

The group, including experts in infectious disease, pediatrics, virology, and immunology, asserts that government policies must be based on well-established scientific evidence, claiming that the task force misrepresents data.

"We collectively request that the 'Alberta's COVID-19 Pandemic Response' report ... be officially dismissed for use as a source of information for both public and provincial policy, as it inaccurately reflects the body of scientific evidence," the letter states.

This is the latest group to oppose the $2-million task force report, written for the provincial government and published on its website. The Alberta Medical Association has described the report as "anti-science" and "anti-evidence."

Released last week, the task force report includes several recommendations, such as barring healthy children and teens from receiving COVID-19 vaccinations and halting the use of COVID vaccines altogether without "full disclosure" of potential risks.

The open letter accuses the task force of misrepresenting the body of evidence regarding vaccines and being selective in the data included.

The authors argue that preventing access to vaccines could endanger Albertans and further strain the health system.

Calgary-based infectious disease researcher Craig Jenne is one of the letter's signatories.

"I've got a very high level of concern. There are many issues in this document that directly misrepresent the situation and do not capture the efficacy and safety we have determined for these vaccines," said Jenne, who has a PhD in immunology.

"We thought this was quite misleading and, in fact, could be very dangerous."

Jenne argues that the data is flawed and seems to support "a specific narrative."

Dr. Cora Constantinescu, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Alberta Children's Hospital, who has treated numerous children with COVID-19, expressed concern, stating, "All I care about is the health of children. And if this report means fewer people will protect their children, then that's distressing."

Constantinescu, who signed the letter, is worried that no pediatric specialists are listed as contributors to the task force report.

The letter's authors maintain that vaccines are the best defence against SARS-CoV-2 and that scientific evidence shows they effectively prevent severe disease, hospitalization, and death, as well as long COVID and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children.

They argue that risks associated with COVID-19 vaccines are routinely disclosed, countering the implications in the report, and that vaccine risks are much lower than those connected to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

"You can't have a discussion around safety without also talking about the disease that the vaccine is trying to prevent. And that balance was not offered, in my view, in this report," said Constantinescu.

At a news conference in Calgary on Wednesday, Premier Danielle Smith was asked about the task force report.

She expressed satisfaction with the diverse perspectives in the report, asserting that the government has no agenda regarding how to proceed on the issue.

"We're going to take a look at that and will make decisions about whether to move forward on any of those recommendations," Smith stated.

"The purpose was to determine what we should do if we face another pandemic, to avoid mistakes that hurt people."

Smith further emphasized that various voices should be included in scientific discussions.

"A narrative has been enforced by silencing contrarian voices, and that is not our approach," she asserted.

"We're going to listen to every voice and make our best assessment based on evidence. The evidence has evolved... What we were told at the beginning is somewhat different from what we are hearing today."

The health minister's office did not provide a direct response to questions regarding the letter or the authors' request to dismiss the report.

The letter's authors noted that Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Alberta Medical Association, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, and other international health organizations consistently affirm the safety and efficacy of vaccines.

"A report aimed at informing government decisions must be more comprehensive," Jenne stated.

MLA Eric Bouchard, who hosted a town hall meeting last spring to advocate for ending COVID mRNA vaccines for children, was the first to share the document on social media last week. The UCP representative for Calgary-Lougheed is urging the government to act swiftly to pause access to vaccines for children.

Meanwhile, the pandemic response report was reissued on Tuesday after the removal of a University of Calgary professor's name from its list of contributors. The updated document includes a note declaring that Dr. John Conly had been included in error and was interviewed solely for "a singular item" regarding the interpretation of a referenced article.

The task force expressed regret over the mistake, and Conly's name and bio have been removed.