Traveler’s certificates: useless, says College of Physicians

The certificates of good health, which some insurers and tour operators would require, are useless and have no value, warned the College of Physicians of Quebec on Friday.

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The College stated in a warning that such a certificate cannot guarantee that the person will not develop symptoms related to COVID-19 in the days following his arrival at the destination.

The professional order of doctors says it has heard that travel agencies and insurance companies would ask people planning a stay outside Quebec to have a certificate of good health before going on a trip.

The College recommended that physicians not produce them and inform the person who will come to the clinic for this reason only, as soon as they arrive.

“Such a measure will avoid this person unnecessary exposure to a risk of contagion in the waiting room,” it was said.

The colleague stressed that steps are underway with associations of travel agents and insurance companies to put an end to these practices.

“In the current context of a pandemic, the College hopes that this type of demand will stop, because it will lead to the misuse of medical resources, which should be fully mobilized in the service of sick people,” it was added.

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