Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto said he is not going to have Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for international travel dictate his vaccine status. .“I’m not going to let Canada tell me what I do and don’t put in my body for a little bit of money,” said Realmuto in a Monday video. .“It’s just not worth it.”.Realmuto has been unable to enter Canada to play against the Toronto Blue Jays because he is unvaccinated. .He said the vaccine mandate has created an “extremely unfortunate situation.” He added his teammates understand his decision, and they would love for him to make the trip. .Realmuto said he did not take the COVID-19 vaccine because he is “a healthy 31-year-old professional athlete.” He claimed he has caught COVID-19 a few times with mild symptoms, and doctors advised him not to take the vaccine. .“I wasn’t going to take it because I was told to,” he said. .The Canadian government suspended its COVID-19 vaccinate mandate for domestic and outbound international travellers, federally-regulated transportation employees, and government workers effective June 20. ."Today's announcement is possible because Canadians have stepped up to protect each other,” said Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc. .Foreign nationals coming to Canada will be required to be vaccinated to enter, although they can depart the country if they are unvaccinated..This incident comes after Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic was denied entry into Australia and had his visa cancelled in January because he failed to meet the requirements for a COVID-19 vaccine exemption. .Djokovic landed in Australia after receiving a medical exemption shielding him from the strict vaccination rules for the Australian Open. .Border authorities did not accept the exemption. The Australian Border Force issued a statement saying Djokovic failed to meet entry requirements.
Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto said he is not going to have Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for international travel dictate his vaccine status. .“I’m not going to let Canada tell me what I do and don’t put in my body for a little bit of money,” said Realmuto in a Monday video. .“It’s just not worth it.”.Realmuto has been unable to enter Canada to play against the Toronto Blue Jays because he is unvaccinated. .He said the vaccine mandate has created an “extremely unfortunate situation.” He added his teammates understand his decision, and they would love for him to make the trip. .Realmuto said he did not take the COVID-19 vaccine because he is “a healthy 31-year-old professional athlete.” He claimed he has caught COVID-19 a few times with mild symptoms, and doctors advised him not to take the vaccine. .“I wasn’t going to take it because I was told to,” he said. .The Canadian government suspended its COVID-19 vaccinate mandate for domestic and outbound international travellers, federally-regulated transportation employees, and government workers effective June 20. ."Today's announcement is possible because Canadians have stepped up to protect each other,” said Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc. .Foreign nationals coming to Canada will be required to be vaccinated to enter, although they can depart the country if they are unvaccinated..This incident comes after Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic was denied entry into Australia and had his visa cancelled in January because he failed to meet the requirements for a COVID-19 vaccine exemption. .Djokovic landed in Australia after receiving a medical exemption shielding him from the strict vaccination rules for the Australian Open. .Border authorities did not accept the exemption. The Australian Border Force issued a statement saying Djokovic failed to meet entry requirements.
