The BC Teachers Federation is welcoming a move by B.C.’s Health minister to require mandatory reporting of vaccinations for students but adds the move also needs muscle.

Glen Hansman says considering the growing number of misinformed parents choosing not to vaccinate the question of who has the power to intervene needs to be answered.

“These are some of the pieces that will have to be clarified,” he said. “What tools will be available? Who gets to make the call?”

“Certainly, nobody at the school level is necessarily qualified to be making those sorts of determinations. If the health authority was involved or the school district had a clear legislative tool that they were able to use, not to be punitive, but to be able to make sure that the student body as a whole is safe.”

Hansman says he is looking forward to discussing with the province how the vaccination reporting will be handled by schools in practical terms.

He says it is crucial for the province to be able to track who is vaccinated and who is not and be able to intervene if necessary.