Dr.

Jeanette Dietrich
3113 Rutledge Rd, Sydenham, ON, K0H 2T0

December 18, 2020

Mr. Hillier
MPP, Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston
Unit 1, 105 Dufferin St.
Perth, ON K7H 3A5
[email protected]

Dear Mr. Hillier:

As a physician who both lives and works in this region, I must express my dismay at your recent
attendance at rallies protesting the use of public health measures in the fight against COVID-19. I
have viewed the video on your website where you purport to, “Stick to the proof and not the
propaganda, (Hillier, 2020)” yet it is filled with misinformation.

You imply that COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV2 is not much worse than the common
cold by saying, “Why are so many people living in, with such concern, in such dread and taking such
precautions for something, for a virus, a coronavirus, that is more like the common cold than it
isn’t.” You state the infection fatality rate is “very similar to the flu.” (Hillier, 2020) You put a link
to an article that explains how coronaviruses can be mild and cause the common cold but there are
also deadly ones such as SARS and MERS. The article states “In December 2019, another virus
joined these dangerous cousins. Scientists are calling it SARS-CoV2 (Hesman Saey, 2020).” Yet you
label this article “Common Cold can be coronavirus” which in no way reflects its contents.

COVID-19 has a more serious spectrum of disease than both the common cold and the flu.
According to IPAC Canada every year the flu causes approximately 1 billion infections and 290 000
to 650 000 deaths world-wide. In Canada approximately 3500 people die from flu every year.
(Infection Prevention and Control Canada, n.d.) Based on the latest Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Case
count as of December 17 there have been about 74.9 million cases globally and 1.66 million deaths
and 13 919 deaths in Canada (Johns Hopkins University, 2020), far exceeding a typical year for
death from the flu, and the year is not over.

You also fail to appreciate that there are unpleasant outcomes other than death. A study in US
Veteran’s Affairs hospitals compared 5453 hospitalized patients with influenza to 3948
hospitalized patients with COVID-19. The mortality rate was approximately 5 times higher in
COVID-19 patients compared to those with the flu. The risk for acute respiratory distress syndrome
(which often leads to intubation) was 19 times higher for those with COVID-19. The risk for a
variety of individual complications (heart inflammation, blood clots in the legs or other veins, blood
clots in the lungs, brain bleeds, liver failure, bacteria in the blood stream and pressure ulcers) were
each 2-3 times higher in COVID-19 patients. COVID-19 patients spent on average three times as
long in hospital as influenza patients (Cates, et al., 2020). Also, increasing reports are coming out
regarding the presence of long-lasting symptoms from COVID-19. A survey of 143 Italian patients
found that 2 months after hospitalization only 12.6% were symptom free (Langreth & Court, 2020).
Among 965 survivors in South Korea, 91% had long-term symptoms after recovery from COVID-19
(Mack, 2020)

Mr. Hillier, you also state that, “The world’s top health experts and scientists have demonstrated
beyond a doubt that the PCR test is false and faulty.” “Often, people if you’ve had a cold within the
last 6 months your test with the PCR will come back positive. That is a known fact (Hillier, 2020).”
You reference a You tube video by Dr. Michael Yeadon (Yeadon, 2020) and an article quoting Dr.
Carl Heneghan (Mahase, 2020). The comment about a positive PCR happening from a cold 6 months
ago came from the interviewer making that statement in the You tube video, not the scientist. It is
correct that the PCR test will detect pieces of viral RNA which may not have infectious potential.
The PCR test is specific to SARS-CoV2, the agent that causes COVID-19, not other viruses that cause
the common cold and the CDC has stated that swabs may remain positive for up to 3 months after
infection (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020), not 6 months.

Both the scientists you reference were discussing the situation in the UK in September when many
asymptomatic people were being tested and case counts were rising but deaths were not. The
concern was that as with any test, when you test people with a lower likelihood of disease a greater
percentage of positives may be false positives. This is not an argument that PCR testing is false, it
means that you need to understand the nuances of testing. Dr. Heneghan was arguing that contact
tracing should be based on positive tests, but restrictive measures should be based on hospital
admissions and symptomatic cases. In Ontario we have seen rising cases followed by rising
hospitalizations, long-term care outbreaks, ICU admissions and deaths (Queen's Printer for Ontario,
2020). Clearly, we have an increasing COVID-19 outbreak, not just faulty tests. On November 17
you challenged Christine Elliott and stated the government was over-reacting to the 127 ICU
patients on that date. Modelling has shown that once we surpass 150 ICU patients it becomes
challenging to continue with regular hospital care such as heart or cancer surgeries. At 350 ICU
patients then it becomes impossible (Katawazi, 2020). On December 17, after a month we now
have 263 ICU patients (Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2020), yet you still argue against lockdowns
and masks. You fail to understand that if we wait until hospitals are overwhelmed it is too late.

You end your video by stating, “We know the average age for people who have died with COVID-19,
and I state that specifically with COVID-19, is over the age of 80, be, um, (sic) in most jurisdictions
between 70 and 80% of all COVID-19 related deaths have happened in long-term care homes or
nursing homes. COVID-19 to me on examination of all the proof and rejecting of the propaganda
tells me we should lead normal lives with full freedoms and have our responsibilities to exercise
our own judgement re-instated and defended (Hillier, 2020).” Unfortunately, this infection does not
just stay in one segment of the population. It is rising in all age groups and has entered nursing
homes again (Queen's Printer for Ontario, 2020). If you and your followers exercise your so-called
“freedoms” it will drive infection rates which will lead to more hospitalizations, deaths, disability,
and postponed surgeries. I would like to remind you that you are paid to represent all your
constituents, including those who are vulnerable due to age, occupation, underlying conditions, or
other factors. Instead of spending time fighting against public health measures to contain COVID-
19, you could put your energy into something useful such as economic, social, and mental health
supports to help the local population get through this difficult time.

While I recognize that it is legitimate to debate the relative risks and benefits of lockdowns, that
debate must be based on valid representations of the effects of COVID-19. You are spreading

Page 2
misinformation that minimizes the seriousness of COVID-19 to support your personal anti-
lockdown and anti-mask beliefs. You misuse scientific references to give your stance an appearance
of being scientific. I urge the public to ignore you and heed the advice of trained health care
professionals. Continue to practice social distancing, wear masks, and keep everyone safe.

Sincerely,

Jeanette Dietrich, MD, CCFP

To date, the following physicians have signed

this letter in support:

Doug Alkenbrack, MD
Peter Jechel, MD, CCFP(EM), FCFP
Mamdouh Andrawis, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Anil Kuchinad, MD, CCFP
Kristen Church, MD, CCFP
Robin Kennie, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Sandra Cowan, MD
Catherine Koester, MD, CCFP
Peter Cunniffe, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Christine Last, MD, CCFP
Daniel Curran, MD, CCFP(EM)
Shawn Yow-Wah Liu, MD, CCFP
Alan Drummond, MD, CCFP(EM), FCFP
Ian Laing McFadzean, MD
Matt Dumas, MD, CCFP
Aaron McGregor, MD, CCFP
Chandra Eberhard, MD, CCFP
Craig Mitchell, MD, CCFP
Taylor Ferrier, MD, CCFP
Kim Morrison, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Alain Gauthier, MD, CCFP(FPA), FCFP
Johnathan Moulton, MD, CCFP
Sabra Gibbens, MD, CCFP
Sonal Patel, MD, CCFP
Crystal Gonu, MD, CCFP
Stephanie Popiel, MC, CCFP, FCFP
Joy Hataley, MD, CCFP(FPA), FCFP
John Raleigh, MD, CCFP(EM), FCFP
Graeme Hendry, MD, CCFP, FCFP
Cory Scott, MD, CCFP
Kalyan Hota, MD, CCFP
Richard Peter Seaby, MD, CCFP
Steven Ingo, MD, MCFP

Page 3
Mahysin Siyih, MD, CCFP Boudewijn (Bob) Van Noppen, MD, CCFP

James Simpson, MD, CCFP Leigh Wahay, MD, CCFP, FCFP

Jeffrey Sloan, MD, CCFP, FCFP Meng Ying Xu, MD, CCFP

Elizabeth Touzel, MD, CCFP, FCFP

Thomas Touzel, MD, CCFP

References
Cates, J., Lucero-Obusan, C., Dahl, R. M., Schirmer, P., Garg, S., Oda, G., . . . Cardemil, C. V. (2020,
October 23). Risk for In-Hospital Complications Associated with COVID-19 and Influenza -
Veterans Health Administration, United States, October 1, 2018-May 31, 2020. Morbidity
and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), pp. 1528-1534.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, October 19). Duration of Isolation and
Precautions for Adults with COVID-19. Retrieved from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-
19): https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/duration-isolation.html
Hesman Saey, T. (2020, February 25). Explainer: What is a coronoavirus? Retrieved from Science
News for Students: https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/explainer-what-is-a-
coronavirus
Hillier, R. (2020, November 18). (Video) What is COVID? Retrieved from
https://www.randyhilliermpp.com/20201118_whatiscovid
Infection Prevention and Control Canada. (n.d.). Seasonal Influenza, Avian Influenza and Pandemic
Influenza. Retrieved from ipac-canada.org: https://ipac-canada.org/influenza-
resources.php
Johns Hopkins University. (2020, December 1). Global Map. Retrieved from Coronavirus Resource
Center: https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
Katawazi, M. (2020, November 19). Ontario hits 150 COVID-19 patient threshold in ICU raising
concerns around other hospital care. Retrieved from CTV News:
https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/ontario-hits-150-covid-19-patient-threshold-in-icu-raising-
concerns-around-other-hospital-care-1.5195799

Langreth, R., & Court, E. (2020, August 26). Brain Deficits, Nerve Pain Can Torment Covid Patients
for Months. Bloomberg. Retrieved from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-
08-26/brain-deficits-nerve-pain-as-covid-torments-infected-for-months
Mack, Z. (2020, September 30). Best Life: 91 Percent of COVID Survivors Have This in Common, Study
Says. Retrieved from Microsoft News: https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/91-
percent-of-covid-survivors-have-this-in-common-study-says/ar-BB19yiqi
Mahase, E. (2020). Covid-19: the problems with case counting. BMJ, 370, m3374. doi:10.1136

Page 4
Queen's Printer for Ontario. (2020, December 1). COVID-19 (coronavirus in Ontario. Retrieved from
COVID-19: https://covid-19.ontario.ca/
Yeadon, M. (2020, 09 17). Government are using a Covid-19 test with undeclared false positive rates.
Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch7wze46md0

Page 5