A new report says misinformation about COVID-19 contributed to more than 2800 Canadian deaths and at least $300 million in hospital and ICU visits.
The Council of Canadian Academies says the misinformation caused people to disbelieve that COVID-19 was real or exaggerated, leading to vaccine hesitancy.
The report estimates that the vaccine hesitancy affected more than 2.35 million people between March and November 2021.
It says that, had those people not delayed or refused vaccination, the deaths and hospitalizations could have been avoided.
The report only looked at that nine-month period during the pandemic, which has so far lasted about three years.
The Council of Canadian Academies is a nonprofit organization that reviews evidence on complex scientific issues of public interest.