Violence erupts at hospital over nation’s controversial jabs for kids rule

A nation with one of the world’s strictest vaccine rules remains bitterly divided after a shock brawl between anti-vaxxers and hospital staff.

The first nation on the planet to announce a Covid vaccine mandate for children remains bitterly divided over the tough rule three months on.

In November 2021, Costa Rica’s government revealed coronavirus vaccines would be made compulsory for all citizens aged five and over, except for those with approved medical exemptions.

According to the latest Our World in Data figures, 72.2 per cent of the population is fully vaccinated, and overall Costa Ricans have been highly supportive of the Covid vaccination program, with 94 per cent agreeing it was “important that all people get vaccinated against Covid-19” in a survey published in October by the Pan-American Health Organisation.

However, the mandate for children has been a thorny issue, with the debate coming to a violent breaking point last week when a brawl broke out at a hospital.

The drama began when a six-year-old boy was taken to the St Vincent de Paul Hospital in the province of Heredia, suffering from a respiratory illness.

When doctors at the hospital, which is located near the nation’s capital of San Jose, discovered he was unvaccinated, they told his father that he would need to receive the jab, even without his parents’ consent.

The child’s parents claimed their son was being held “hostage” by medics, and along with six others, the child’s furious father later stormed the hospital in an attempt to prevent the vaccination.

Wild footage taken at the scene revealed the angry mob clashing with staff at the entrance before forcing their way inside the front doors.

Seven people were arrested over the clash, and the hospital was temporarily closed as a result.

The leader of the mob, identified by Q Costa Rica as Marco Albertazzi, was ordered to three months of house arrest with electronic monitoring.

Wild scenes erupted at a hospital in Costa Rica over the nation's vaccine mandate for children. Picture: Twitter

Seven people were arrested. Picture: Twitter

According to the publication, the child did ultimately receive the vaccine, despite the fierce opposition of his parents and the scuffle outside the hospital.

The parents’ cause has been adopted by independent politician Erick Rodríguez Steller, who has publicly slammed the mandate as “nonsense” and claiming Costa Rica was under a “sanitary dictatorship”.

Last week, he told congress “the state shouldn’t be in the business of deciding how we raise our children”, and the shocking case – and the violence that it inspired – continues to dominate local headlines as the nation remains divided over the tough vaccine rule.

Throughout the pandemic, the issue of vaccine mandates has divided many, with mandates for children proving to be especially controversial.

In fact, in December the World Health Organisation’s Europe regional director Dr Hans Kluge made headlines after stating that vaccine mandates should be “an absolute last resort”, although he urged nations to “protect children and the schools” as cases surged across the globe.

Kids over five in Costa Rica can be vaccinated without their parents’ consent. Picture: Ezequiel Becerra/AFP

“As school holidays approach, we must also acknowledge that children contaminate their parents and grandparents at home, with a 10 times increased risk for these adults to develop severe disease, be hospitalised or die when non-vaccinated,” he said.

“The health risks extend beyond the children themselves.”

But while some nations like Costa Rica press on with tough Covid measures, others – like Denmark – are dropping restrictions and transitioning to a new Covid normal state, with authorities attempting to live with the virus rather than trying to eradicate or suppress it.

Last week, Denmark became one of the nations in the European Union to ditch most Covid restrictions, with authorities deeming it was no longer “a socially critical disease”.

Ireland has also scrapped most restrictions, while the Netherlands has also started to ease its lockdown.