Kaycee Madu, Minister of Justice and Solicitor General

By David Opinko/LethbridgeNewsNOW

Protecting Access To Hospitals

Alberta criminalizes hospital protests, fines start at $1,000

Sep 28, 2021 | 5:08 PM

The Alberta Government is taking steps that it says will keep healthcare workers and patients safe.

Premier Jason Kenney says there have been several anti-vaccination protests outside of healthcare facilities across the province, many of which have impeded the abilities of both those providing and receiving care.

The province will be adding hospitals and other health facilities to 2020’s Critical Infrastructure Defence Act, declaring these buildings as being essential infrastructure.

“Recent protests at hospitals have revealed the need to keep health-care workers safe and to make sure Albertans can receive critical care when they need it,” says Kenney. “All Canadians have the right to peaceful protest, but blocking ambulances and preventing people from getting treatment is definitely not peaceful. Law enforcement is now fully empowered to make sure hospitals and health facilities are safe.”

The act builds on existing trespassing laws to create offences for trespassing on, destroying, damaging, and obstructing the use or operation of any essential infrastructure.

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The Premier adds that the healthcare system is already under assault by COVID-19 to a level we have never seen before.

Provincially, ICU capacity is at 86 per cent, which is after 197 surge spaces were recently added. Without that, it would be around 184 per cent capacity.

• North Zone: 100% capacity
• Central Zone, 89% capacity
• Edmonton Zone, 89% capacity
• Calgary Zone, 82% capacity
• South Zone, 81% capacity

Penalties consist of:

• For individuals, a minimum fine of $1,000 and up to $10,000 and $25,000 for first and subsequent offences respectively or a term of imprisonment of up to six months, or both.
• For corporations, a minimum fine of $10,000 and up to $200,000.

Irfan Sabir, NDP Critic for Justice and Solicitor General, made the following statement in response to today’s Bill 1 announcement from the UCP:

“The harassment of healthcare workers and patients by anti-mask and anti-vaccine extremists outside Alberta hospitals is disgusting, and the Alberta NDP condemns it. The UCP government did nothing to prevent these incidents for many weeks. What’s more, members of the UCP caucus have openly sympathized with and promoted this behaviour as recently as Friday, without facing any consequences from Jason Kenney.

“I was expecting to hear an assurance that Bill 1 will not be used against healthcare workers in the event of labour action, and I call on the UCP to clarify this immediately.

“Healthcare workers and patients must be protected not just from UCP extremists, but from the devastating fourth wave of COVID-19, which has sent more Albertans into hospital and the ICU than ever before in our province’s history. Thousands more Albertans have had their life-saving surgeries cancelled as a result. This was entirely preventable, but every member of the UCP chose to do nothing as this crisis escalated.

“Today’s the premier’s office said the excruciating pressure on healthcare workers will continue to get worse for at least another month, and yet he failed to present any kind of a plan to address this. Yet again, the UCP response to COVID-19 is far too little, far too late.”

(With files from rdnewsNOW)