To continue our commitment to minimizing risk for all in-person event participants, ALL INFORMS Meetings in 2022 will be vaccine-mandated* events. Additionally, INFORMS will follow guidance and leading practices for events from the CDC, Health Canada, and WHO. To view the current travel policies of Canada, visit travel.gc.ca/travel-covid.
*A person is considered fully vaccinated two (2) weeks after their second dose in a 2-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, OR two (2) weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine. If you don’t meet these requirements, regardless of your age, you are NOT fully vaccinated.
INFORMS will accept any COVID-19 vaccine approved for full or emergency use by the World Health Organization, including those from Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson used in the U.S. Other vaccines are also approved by the WHO and used widely around the world, including from AstraZeneca, Covaxin, Covishield, Covovax, Novavax and China’s Sinovac and Sinopharm will also be accepted. We will not accept Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine until the WHO has approved it for emergency use.
More information will be added it as it becomes available.
International Travelers:
Make a plan before traveling within Canada or leaving the country. You may need to have proof of vaccination.
- https://www.qured.us
- https://www.emed.com/airline-travel
- https://www.azova.com/testing/flowflexdelta/
In the Hyatt Regency Vancouver, there is a pop-up that currently sells 2-pack Rapid Antigen Test Kit for CAD $109.00 plus tax and our RT-LAMP Test Kit (1 test) for CAD $175.00 plus tax.
Both tests are completed virtually through a secure patient portal at https://portal.switchhealth.ca/.
Once connected to a healthcare professional the test takes about 15 to 20 minutes to complete and results will show up on your testing device in 15 minutes for the Rapid Antigen test and in about 30 minutes for the RT-LAMP tests. After your test is completed with the telehealth team, you will receive a text message and email advising you to upload a photo of your results to your account. Once you have done so their team will verify the result and you will receive a travel certificate within 4 hours of uploading your photo. This certificate will be available for download on the portal.
For your convenience, the Telehealth service is open 24/7 and no appointment is required. The pop-up is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm local time.
Please make sure you have a plan. Please make sure you have a plan.
Federal requirements for travel
The Government of Canada requires all travelers 12 years and 4 months and older to be fully vaccinated and show proof of vaccination to use federally regulated methods of travel:
- Departing from any Canadian airport
- Travelling on VIA Rail and Rocky Mountaineer trains
- Staying on a non-essential passenger vessel for more than 24 hours (like a cruise ship)
- BC Ferries does not require proof of vaccination
Note: You’re considered fully vaccinated 14 days after you get your second dose of vaccine.
The information below on accepted vaccines was posted on 08 December 2021. Please check this link for current information.
Vaccines currently accepted by the Government of Canada for the purpose of travel to and within Canada are:
- AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD (ChAdOx1-S, Vaxzevria, AZD1222)
- Bharat Biotech (Covaxin, BBV152 A, B, C)
- Janssen/Johnson & Johnson
- Moderna (mRNA-1273)
- Pfizer-BioNTech (Comirnaty, tozinameran, BNT162b2)
- Sinopharm BIBP (BBIBP-CorV)
- Sinovac (CoronaVac, PiCoVacc)
To qualify as a fully vaccinated traveler, you must have received, at least 14 full days prior to the day you travel:
- at least 2 doses of a vaccine accepted by the Government of Canada for the purpose of travel
- or a mix of 2 accepted vaccines
- or at least 1 dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine
