Ontario actor, mother forced to drive from Vancouver to Toronto after vaccine medical exemption denied at airport
An Ontario mother and son say they will have to drive from Vancouver to Toronto after the 18-year-old's COVID-19 vaccine medical exemption was denied at the airport following the implementation of new travel rules—leaving them stranded and confused.
Stephanie Giordano, who is fully vaccinated, and her son Dorian were set to fly back home on Saturday. Dorian has an auto-immune disorder and travels with a written note from his doctor exempting him from getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
He is an actor and was able to get to Vancouver with the letter, along with a negative PCR test taken 72 hours before his flight, but when the family arrived at the airport on Dec. 4 to fly to Toronto, his exemption was rejected.
"They told me there was a new rule, that I had to fill out paperwork to approve his medical exemption and it could take up to 21 days to get an approval for it," Stephanie said. "I said we haven't even been gone 21 days."
As of Nov. 30, travellers who cannot get vaccinated for medical reasons must fill out a form through their airline and have a licensed Canadian doctor sign it.
"If you’re travelling with multiple airlines, you’ll need to contact each airline," the government's website says.
Stephanie said that she called the Med Desk with Air Canada and spoke with numerous people before being told they had just been informed of the new policy on Dec. 1, three days prior to their flight.
Flying with Air Canada? Here's what you need to know about check-in times. (Flickr / Trevor Carl)
"She really apologized," Stephanie said. "So we just came back to our hotel. Thank goodness they're giving us a really discounted rate, and I reached out to so many new sources and actually went online and kind of asked for help if anybody knew anybody that was driving back, because I don't see that well for my driving."
Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick said the airline was only able to communicate the new travel requirements as of Nov. 30.
"We are asking our customers to submit such requests 21 days prior to travel to ensure they are processed by the flight date and so that customers have ample time to supply any missing or supplementary information," he said in a statement. "That said, we will process and review these forms sooner than that under exceptional or urgent situations."
"But, for their own peace of mind and certainty, customers really should submit the forms early because there can be back and forth and also third parties, like doctors, involved."
- MORE: Toronto area family questions COVID-19 travel rules after spending days in quarantine facility
Air Canada eventually reached out to the family and helped guide them through the application process. However, they found out on Wednesday that the medical exemption was rejected for a second time.
It is not clear why the application was denied, but it could be because Dorian's specialist lives in the United States.
Stephanie's husband is now flying to Vancouver with their daughter so they can celebrate her birthday, and then the whole family will rent a car and drive back to Toronto.
"We're driving back to Toronto in the middle of winter," Stephanie said, while her son added that they will have to navigate closed roads due to the flooding in British Columbia. "My husband has to miss a week of work."
The family said that they weren’t clear that the changing regulations would impact those who were medically exempt as well as people who choose not to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
"If we knew that changes would be affecting the medically exempt, then we would have made choices and decisions ahead of time," she said.
Stephanie has said that Air Canada has committed to reimbursing them for their flights.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Town of Fort Nelson, B.C., ordered to evacuate due to wildfire
The entire town of Fort Nelson, B.C., as well as the nearby Fort Nelson First Nation, has been ordered to evacuate due to an out-of-control wildfire.
Bouchard lifts Edmonton Oilers to 4-3 overtime win over Canucks in Game 2
Evan Bouchard scored 5:38 into overtime and the Edmonton Oilers bounced back for a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs on Friday.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Video shows naked raccoon catching B.C. family by surprise
When Marvin Henschel spotted a strange and hairless creature wandering through a front lawn in B.C.'s Lower Mainland, he could barely believe his eyes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Out-of-control wildfire prompts evacuation alert for Fort McMurray, Saprae Creek Estates Friday night
An evacuation alert was issued for two Wood Buffalo communities Friday night, as crews battled an out-of-control wildfire near Fort McMurray.