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Quebec Cracks Down on Unvaxxed With New Health Tax

The province’s Premier François Legault said Tuesday the tax would be steep.

Quebec has had enough of residents refusing to get vaccinated. The Canadian province’s Premier François Legault said it would impose a health tax on those who won’t get a COVID-19 shot, arguing that the region’s 90 percent vaccination rate puts it in a position to impose it. “We are there now,” he said at a news conference Tuesday. The amount has not yet been determined, but he said the tax would be high enough to reflect the burden the unvaccinated put on hospital staff. According to Global News, 50 percent of intensive care beds are being taken up by unvaccinated people with COVID. “Those who refuse to get the shot bring a burden to hospital staff and an important financial burden for the majority of Quebecers,” Legault said. The province is currently under a curfew due to the Omicron surge and students will be studying remotely until at least Jan. 17.