B.C.'s vaccine cards may not be recognized in other provinces yet

B.C. Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation Ravi Kahlon has his provincial COVID-19 vaccine card scanned by White Spot restaurant general manager Bill Warwick, before having breakfast in Delta, B.C., on Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021. (Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

VANCOUVER -

Just because a vaccinated British Columbian has a so-called "passport" that works on the West Coast doesn't mean they'll be granted access to venues elsewhere in Canada.

Other provinces are launching, or have already launched, similar systems, but having a scannable B.C. Vaccine Card may not mean the holder can get into restaurants and other non-essential businesses while travelling.

A CTV News viewer recently complained about twice being denied entry into restaurants when their proof-of-vaccination wasn't recognized in Quebec.

B.C.'s top doctor, Bonnie Henry, addressed this at a news conference on COVID-19 Tuesday, saying that while the QR code is similar, she's heard of others having the same issue.

"Our expectation is that as things roll out and different provinces start to take this up - particularly Alberta, Ontario, New Brunswick – behind the scenes we're all working together to make sure we know what each other's doing, and at some point it will be interoperable together with a federal program as well," she said.

In a brief email, the Ontario Ministry of Health told CTV News it is working to make sure the province's verification app can support cards from elsewhere in the future.

The ministry said visitors to Ontario can show "vaccination receipts that include dosage dates," along with their photo ID, to get in to venues where proof is required in the meantime.

For visitors to B.C., Dr. Henry said, local businesses have been given guidelines on what proof to ask for of those from other provinces.