The Government is being nudged in the direction of a mandatory vaccination policy for the public sector.

The National COVID-19 Vaccination Operationalization Task Force (NCVOTF) made the carefully couched recommendation in its second report on the weekend.

The recommendation came as Government warns of the strong possibility of a fourth wave of the novel coronavirus, and stress that it is moving away from restriction measures and towards placing the onus on people to be responsible for their own safety.

In its proposal for the introduction of “vaccination or test” programmes in customer-facing public entities and in key economic sectors, the task force argues that “legal advice suggests that the courts are likely to hold that carefully-designed policies to protect public health are demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society and are therefore enforceable”.

It said there are also indications that it is unlikely that any judicial challenge would succeed or prevent implementation in the face of properly designed and correct processes followed to implement the policies.

“The Government should ensure that the details of the policies are reasonable and give due consideration to the varying circumstances that may apply to different persons, including carefully designed consequences for failing to be vaccinated, and exemptions for those unable to be vaccinated for medical reasons. In designing the policies, the Government should consider the terms of similar policies that have been implemented in other jurisdictions with similar legal and constitutional systems,” the task force said.

The Government has repeatedly said it will not be forcing a COVID-19 vaccination policy on Jamaicans, but that mandatory vaccination will become unavoidable as more people get vaccinated and refuse to be restricted by the safety protocols because others opt not to take the vaccine.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has also made clear that at some point there will be a cap on the number of hospital beds designated for COVID-19 patients.

Meanwhile, the NCVOTF is encouraging the Government to swiftly implement a COVID-19 vaccination verification system for events where only vaccinated people are allowed, noting that digital certificates will allow for greater speed and certainty of authenticity.

“The necessary infrastructure for citizens to access certificates and for host organisations to verify these certificates should be established urgently,” the task force said.

The health and wellness ministry has said that digital vaccination certificates will be rolled out starting mid-December.

The task force also said new antiviral drugs should be acquired as soon as possible to treat people when they are diagnosed to avoid severe disease and death.

Focus should also be given to expanding and formalising the Ministry of Health’s home care programme to enable people who do not require hospitalisation for COVID-19 to recover at home, the task force said, inclusive of medical packages with appropriate instructions for self-care.

The NCVOTF further suggested that consideration be given to the implementation of a formal telemedicine programme, supplemented by private doctors, to monitor the clinical progress of patients and to arrange for hospital transfers.

The eight-member task force was set up to examine and optimise the operational and logistical aspects of the national vaccination programme, focusing on improvement of the operation of vaccination sites, the development of strategies to recruit suitable personnel to enhance the delivery of vaccination services, and to make recommendations for an internationally accepted authentication of Jamaica’s vaccine delivery systems.