Witness Testimony

Dr. René Lavigueur, a family physician practising for over 40 years in Gaspésie, testified about what he described as a persistent ethical conflict between Public Health directives and his professional obligations under the Hippocratic oath. He recounted cases in long-term care settings where elderly patients experienced isolation-related decline, including agitation requiring sedation and depressive relapse after confinement. He stated that he publicly questioned the characterization of mRNA products as conventional vaccines and advocated for stronger informed consent language, particularly regarding children and pregnant women.
He reported filing sixteen adverse event reports (manifestations cliniques inhabituelles), including cases of Bell’s palsy, menstrual irregularities, strokes, and deaths occurring within months of vaccination in a population of approximately 12,000. He testified that some reports were initially rejected due to time thresholds and that he contacted regional public health authorities to encourage broader investigation of post-vaccination outcomes. He also issued vaccine exemption certificates based on his assessment of risk, chronic illness, and the principle of free and informed consent, stating that other physicians were reluctant to do so.
Dr. Lavigueur described public criticism following a published letter in La Presse, which was later removed, and reported receiving an advisory letter from the College of Physicians reminding him of media conduct standards. He testified that while no licence sanctions occurred, he perceived institutional intimidation and reluctance among colleagues to engage in open debate. He concluded that regulatory bodies, in his view, failed to fully exercise their role in independently protecting the public during the pandemic and that broader institutional and ethical reforms are warranted.