College of Chiropractors of Ontario Endorse Vaccinations - Declares Vaccinations “Safe & Effective”

In a recent article by The National Post three senior council members of The College of Chiropractors of Ontario (CCO) were attacked in regards to their personal stances on vaccination and health in general. The article highlights chiropractors making personal statements about vaccines and health on social media.

In response, the CCO issued a professional advisory release on March 14, 2019 stating:

“There have been reports of measles outbreaks in Canada and other countries. As part of its role to protect the public interest, the College of Chiropractors of Ontario (CCO) recognizes that vaccinations, as mandated in the Province of Ontario, provide a safe and effective means to protect individuals from infectious diseases. CCO reminds members and the public that treating or advising in relation to vaccination is outside of the chiropractic scope of practice.”

CLICK HERE to read the entire Advisory

The College of Chiropractors of Ontario (CCO) is the licensing and regulatory authority overseeing chiropractic in Ontario. While the CCO instructs chiropractors not to advise members of the public on vaccination as it outside of scope - the CCO did just that.

Making the situation even more bizarre, the trade organization - Ontario Chiropractors Association (OCA) - then sent out an email to its members and encouraged chiropractors to proclaim publicly:

"I recognize that vaccinations provide a safe and effective means to protect individuals from infectious disease.” 

The OCA further encouraged the chiropractors to use the hashtags: 

 #VaccinesWork & #Chiros4VaccinesWork.

Apparently the OCA realized they just told their entire membership to violate the law and a follow up statement was issued shortly after by the OCA to recant their previous statement:
           
“However, the CCO standard on vaccination and immunization, as written today, precludes any comment by members on this issue. CCO reminds members and the public that treating or advising in relation to vaccination is outside of the chiropractic scope of practice. As a result, we ask you to disregard our earlier request for you to make any statement on any social platforms and adhere to the existing CCO standard.”

This whole situation is problematic as the CCO (regulatory authority) struggles to make a position statement that is not contradictory while being charged with the task of regulating chiropractors. Telling chiropractors to advise on the merits of vaccination would be outside of the scope of those chiropractors and since the CCO is made up of chiropractors – how are they allowed to issue any vaccination advice? This should raise questions on the ability of the CCO to regulate chiropractors if it cannot regulate itself.

Violations of this statute carry a hefty fine:

“Every person who contravenes subsection ... 30 (1) is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable, (a) for a first offence, to a fine of not more than $25,000, or to imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or both; and (b) for a second or subsequent offence, to a fine of not more than $50,000, or to imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or both.”

This comes shortly after a Nova Scotia chiropractor losing her license in response to raising questions of the safety and efficacy issues surrounding vaccination on her personal social media accounts. 

This should be unsettling not only to the chiropractic profession but the general public as well in regards to the autonomy of personal health choices. All healthcare decisions involve a certain amount of risk and reward that should be carefully weighed by the individual with the guidance of healthcare providers. 

Chiropractic in Canada has been under attack by elements within the regulatory boards in several provinces both on the issue of vaccination and the care of children and the management of vertebral subluxation in general.

According to reports 800-1000 members have resigned from the Canadian Chiropractic Association over these issues just in the past few months.

READ MORE about the attacks in Canada