Vaccine passport shut down at Edmonton city council after Alberta ends REP

The City of Edmonton will not implement its own form of the Restrictions Exemption Program (REP) after the province discontinued the proof of vaccine system this week.

The City of Edmonton will not implement its own form of the Restrictions Exemption Program (REP) after the province discontinued the proof of vaccine system this week.

At a special meeting on Friday afternoon, City Manager Andre Corbould said proof of vaccination was no longer as meaningful as a public health restriction given breakthrough infections in the Omicron wave after consultation with stakeholders and medical experts.

"Showing proof of vaccination does not have the same level of effectiveness at reducing transmission as it did during the Delta wave," Corbould told council.

"We believe the REP offers more of a perception of safety than actual enhanced safety for Edmontonians."

The city manager added that REP worked effectively when part of a layered defence against COVID-19 that included measures like masking and reduced capacities for venues. Corbould said that a vaccine passport program alone would likely have little impact with the province ending those restrictions.

Corbould said Explore Edmonton surveyed stakeholders, including hotels, attractions, and festival organizers, with 36 per cent of respondents supporting keeping REP. In comparison, 40 per cent did not want the city to implement its own version.

Additionally, Corbould said that other regional municipalities were not planning to implement their own REP, leaving Edmonton as an outlier should it have chosen to maintain a vaccine passport system.