VANCOUVER — Canada’s doctors are calling for the elimination of non-medical exemptions from vaccination in provinces with legislation that mandate children be vaccinated in order to attend school.

The issue was hotly contested by delegates to the Canadian Medical Association annual general council meetings in Vancouver Tuesday as many delegates expressed concern the move may have actually increase opposition to vaccinations and cause some parents to keep their children out of school. The debate came a day after a special session was held to address vaccine hesitancy, and the role of physicians in advocating for improvements to improve vaccination rates.

Dr. Tommy Gershman of B.C. brought the issue to the floor, noting Ontario, New Brunswick and Manitoba all require mandatory vaccination of children but allow exemptions for religious and ideological reasons. He said eliminating these non-medical exemptions would continue the CMA drive to improve vaccination rates while putting sound public health policy ahead of personal liberties.

Dr. Thomas McLaughlin from Ontario who spoke against the resolution said it would be better to advocate for better training for doctors to determine why some parents are opposed to vaccinating their children and then how to educate them appropriately.

That fits with a presentation by Dr. Noni MacDonald, a Halifax pediatrician, who offered “compelling” data from studies that showed eliminating non-medical exemptions caused anti-vaccine advocates to become more vocal and actually decreased vaccination rates.

In an emotional statement, Dr. Lesley Barron also Ontario spoke strongly in support of the move, noting her son has a primary immunodeficiency disease and had ended up in an intensive care unit after catching a vaccine-preventable disease.