. 2024 Mar 11;82(1):32.

doi: 10.1186/s13690-024-01259-8.

Public attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates in Canada: a time series study

David T Zhu^{1

2}, Steven Hawken^{1

3}, Mohamed Serhan¹, Frank Graves⁴, Jeff Smith⁴, Kumanan Wilson^{5

6

7

8

9

10

11}

Affiliations

¹ Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
² Virginia Commonwealth School of Medicine, Richmond, VA, USA.
³ School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
⁴ EKOS Research Associates Inc., Ottawa, ON, Canada.
⁵ Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁶ School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁷ Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁸ Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁹ Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
¹⁰ O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C, USA. kwilson@ohri.ca.
¹¹ Ottawa Hospital, Civic Campus, Administrative Services Building, 1053 Carling Avenue, Box 684, Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4E9, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.

PMID: 38468303
PMCID: PMC10926625
DOI: 10.1186/s13690-024-01259-8

Public attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates in Canada: a time series study

David T Zhu et al. Arch Public Health. 2024.

. 2024 Mar 11;82(1):32.

doi: 10.1186/s13690-024-01259-8.

Authors

David T Zhu^{1

2}, Steven Hawken^{1

3}, Mohamed Serhan¹, Frank Graves⁴, Jeff Smith⁴, Kumanan Wilson^{5

6

7

8

9

10

11}

Affiliations

¹ Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
² Virginia Commonwealth School of Medicine, Richmond, VA, USA.
³ School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
⁴ EKOS Research Associates Inc., Ottawa, ON, Canada.
⁵ Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁶ School of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁷ Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁸ Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
⁹ Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.
¹⁰ O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C, USA. kwilson@ohri.ca.
¹¹ Ottawa Hospital, Civic Campus, Administrative Services Building, 1053 Carling Avenue, Box 684, Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4E9, Canada. kwilson@ohri.ca.

PMID: 38468303
PMCID: PMC10926625
DOI: 10.1186/s13690-024-01259-8

Abstract

Introduction: Since the beginning of the pandemic, numerous public health measures such as COVID-19 vaccines, vaccine mandates and vaccination certificates have been introduced to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Public opinion and attitudes towards these measures have fluctuated in response to the dynamic political, social, and cultural landscape of the pandemic.

Methods: We conducted a time-series study consisting of national cross-sectional surveys between November 2021 to March 2022 to evaluate the Canadian public's attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates.

Results: When examining public sentiment towards COVID-19 vaccine certificates and proof of vaccination measures, there was a shift in responses over time. The proportion of participants "strongly supporting" these measures decreased from 66.0 to 43.1% between W25(Capacity Limits), -W32 (Mask Mandate Removed), whereas "strongly oppose" was the second most common response and rose from 15.9 to 20.6% during this same time period. Concurrently, when examining participants views surrounding mandates, many participants believed that their province was reopening at "about the right pace", which remained relatively stable over time (33.0-35.4%) between W28 (Emergency Act)-W32 (Mask Mandate Removed).

Conclusion: Our study's findings on the public's attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates in Canada may aid to guide and streamline the implementation of future similar public health interventions. Future research should include extended follow-up and a more comprehensive examination of trust in government institutions and polarized perspectives on vaccine mandates.

Keywords: Attitude; COVID-19; Vaccination certificate; Vaccine; Vaccine mandate.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

KW is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of CANImmunize Inc. KW also serves on the vaccine safety advisory boards for Medicago and Moderna.

Figures

**Fig. 1**
Time trends for recurring survey questions

**Fig. 2**
Timeline of survey administration and coinciding key social events

**Fig. 3**
Bar plots for Freedom Convoy questions

See this image and copyright information in PMC

Cited by

Health Literacy and Acceptance of COVID-19 Preventive Measures and Vaccination in the European Union: A Scoping Review.
Vasileia E, Koulierakis G, Fouskas T, Liarigkovinou A. Vasileia E, et al. Health Lit Res Pract. 2025 Jan;9(1):e46-e55. doi: 10.3928/24748307-20250219-01. Epub 2025 Mar 7. Health Lit Res Pract. 2025. PMID: 40064011 Free PMC article.

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Public attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates in Canada: a time series study

Affiliations

Public attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine mandates and vaccine certificates in Canada: a time series study

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Conflict of interest statement

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