Rising Unexpected Deaths in Canada Spark Concern Post-COVID

By Glenn Rosaroso Vale

The COVID-19 pandemic left deep and lasting effects worldwide, and Canada is no exception. A recent report from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) raises concerns about unexpected deaths in the country between 2020 and 2024. While the report claims that COVID-19 death numbers may have been “overestimated,” a closer look at the methodology raises questions about what this really means—and whether it reflects transparency, statistical nuance, or possible misrepresentation.

Questioning the Overestimation Claim

The JCCF report suggests that official COVID-19 death counts were inflated due to broad definitions of what constitutes a death “from COVID-19” (JCCF, 2025). But how could such numbers truly be “overestimated” when standard protocols categorize someone as fully vaccinated only 30 days after receiving their vaccine doses? Anyone who dies within that window is often counted differently, yet still may appear in vaccination-related statistics. Furthermore, death certificates typically include secondary codes indicating the cause of death, which may list “unknown,” “allergy,” or other contributing conditions. Even if a vaccine were a contributing factor, it might not be directly coded as the cause, making the idea of overestimation less straightforward.

This raises critical questions: Are we really seeing overestimation of deaths, or are reporting and coding practices masking nuanced truths about how deaths are recorded? Can publications like this truly increase transparency when the underlying data may already be subject to classification rules and systemic reporting conventions?

Indirect Harms from Pandemic Policies

Regardless of the debate over COVID-19 death counts, other harms appear clearer. Lockdowns, delayed healthcare, and restrictions coincided with rises in:

• Drug and alcohol-related illnesses

• Mental health crises and suicides

• Complications from postponed medical treatments (JCCF, 2025)

Even if COVID deaths were not overstated, these pandemic-adjacent effects show a tangible impact on public health, independent of the virus itself.

Vaccination Policies and Unexplained Deaths

The report also highlights a potential correlation between the accelerated vaccine rollout and deaths from neurological, digestive, and heart-related conditions. Among Canadians under 45, about 25% of deaths were classified as “unknown causes” (JCCF, 2025), raising further questions about how thoroughly secondary causes are documented and whether current reporting mechanisms capture all relevant data.

Political and Social Context

During the pandemic, the Trudeau government implemented strict measures, including vaccine mandates and lockdowns. Public frustration culminated in the 2022 Freedom Convoy, where protesters challenged what they viewed as overly restrictive policies (Griffin, 2025). The government’s response, invoking the Emergencies Act, sparked debate over civil liberties versus public health priorities—debates that continue to shape the conversation around transparency and accountability in pandemic reporting.

Moving Forward

The JCCF report underscores the importance of ongoing scrutiny and critical analysis of mortality data. While COVID-19 posed real health risks, understanding how deaths are recorded, categorized, and reported is crucial to ensuring transparency. The question remains: Are deaths truly “overestimated,” or do current reporting systems obscure the full picture of vaccine-related and indirect pandemic fatalities? These are questions that demand deeper investigation if Canada is to learn from its pandemic experience and safeguard public trust in health reporting.

References (APA 7th Edition)

Griffin, A. (2025, September 19). Unexpected death trend in Canada, in wake of COVID pandemic, raises concerns: Report. NTD. Unexpected Death Trend in Canada, in Wake of COVID Pandemic, Raises Concerns: Report | NTD

Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. (2025, September 3). Post-Covid Canada: The rise in unexpected deaths. https://www.jccf.ca/reports/?utm_source=chatgpt.com