Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in Alberta, REUTERS/Mike Sturk/File Photo
A large group of health care workers have written an open letter to Alberta’s new premier, Danielle Smith, criticizing Alberta Health Services (AHS) for what they call the organization’s “draconian” policies and “mismanagement” during the province’s COVID-19 response.
The letter states Smith was accurate in describing the unvaccinated as “the most discriminated group of Albertans” in her lifetime.
“We have lived it. We have been ostracized at work, investigated, and punished by our licensing bodies for practices that would have previously been expected. Many of us have lost our means of providing for our families,” the letter continues.
Signed by 1,600 people—specifically, upwards of 367 health care professionals, more than 46 frontline workers, and over 1,200 concerned Alberta residents—the letter was sent to the premier by Airdrie lawyer Carol Crosson, who specializes in constitutional law.
Warm Reception Expected
Crosson told The Epoch Times that the premier has confirmed receipt of the letter, and she expects it will be met with a “warmer” reception than a similar letter attempted in 2021, before Smith was elected.
“Last year, around the same time, about 3,500 Alberta healthcare professionals sent a letter to Alberta Health Services sharing deep concerns about vaccine mandates, sharing similar fundamental principles as supported in this year’s letter,” Cross said.
She adds it is encouraging to see Smith discussing the vaccine mandates openly.
‘Abhorrent Abuse of Authority’
The letter pointed to the AHS Mandatory Covid Vaccine Policy, calling it a “direct violation of the principle of informed consent.”
“Threatening to take away jobs, for refusing an unproven, undesired medical procedure would certainly qualify as compulsion, duress, and coercion,” the letter says. “This alone is an abhorrent abuse of [AHS] authority.”
The letter states that AHS implemented a mandatory COVID vaccine policy, and universally denied legitimate, valid medical and religious exemptions. “This is another abhorrent abuse of authority … administrators, who had no proper medical knowledge of the patient, were over-riding the medical advice … of established patient-doctor relationships,” reads the letter.
The letter notes that doctors who spoke out against the preferred government narrative, or who provided vaccine exemptions to patients, were subject to disciplinary actions by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta.
The “mismanagement” of AHS, the letter alleges, resulted in “significant loss of health care staff: through dismissal, being put on unpaid leave, early retirement, and mass exodus from the province.” The group says the result was decreased morale, fewer workers, higher surgical wait times, and closures of beds, hospitals, and clinics.
Informed Consent
The group suggested Smith should question her political opponents if there is continued support for mandatory COVID vaccines and other public health policies. “Science should encourage questions, whereas Tyranny persecutes those who question,” says the letter.
Some of the group’s demands include asking the premier to reinstate the concept of “informed consent” for health care choices and to end any COVID vaccine mandates still in place in the province.
It also suggests AHS needs to be restructured to “prevent abuse of authority.” The letter calls on the government to implement an independent provincial vaccine injury reporting system, and alleges the existing framework is “staffed by nurses that appear to arbitrarily reject most reports.”
The group, which has a website inviting ordinary Albertans to sign in support, calls for an end to COVID vaccination for children, stating they are “a population not at any serious risk from COVID.” The letter further requests the province provide whistleblower protection for nurses and doctors, so that governing bodies cannot threaten or revoke licenses of health workers.
The signatories to the open letter have stayed anonymous for fear of reprisal, but if the premier requests it, a full list of signatories can be provided in confidence, states the letter.
The premier and AHS were contacted for comment but did not reply by press time.
