An Interior Health Nurse who denied that there was ever a pandemic and then resigned instead of getting vaccinated against COVID has lost her case at the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

According to a Jan. 22 BC Human Rights Tribunal decision, Donna Maatz worked for Interior Health for 25 years before choosing to resign over getting vaccinated.

Maatz, who was working as a clinical coordinator at a long-term care facility in Creston when she quit, later filed a case against Interior Health arguing it discriminated against her based on her physical disability and political beliefs when health workers were mandated to get vaccinated.

In her submissions to the Tribunal, Maatz argued there was never a medical COVID-19 virus pandemic, and Johns Hopkins University and the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation somehow knew about the COVID-19 situation before it started.

“There was a well-planned money laundering scheme directly related to the COVID-19 virus that was carried out using the involvement and facilities of the World Health Organization and the World Bank in which the government of Canada was complicit,” the decision reads. “The Canadian government had a secret agreement with Pfizer to break all laws with respect to the mass vaccinations with the Pfizer vaccine.”

Maatz also argued that health officials signed a “secret oath” to cover up COVID-19 vaccine results and there was no evidence that anyone had died of COVID because no autopsies were carried out.

The Tribunal said her theories lacked “logic, consistency, integration, and clarity,” and a belief in unfounded theories was not a political belief protected by the BC Human Rights Code.

“Through her descriptions of her theories, I am unable to discern a clear articulation of a political belief that is core to Ms. Maatz’ concept of how society should work,” the Tribunal ruled. “At most, I understand her submissions to reflect a series of loosely-connected beliefs about the origin of the vaccine and the legitimacy (and even existence) of the global pandemic.”

The former nurse’s arguments stand in contrast to an article issued by Interior Health just six months before she resigned.

She was nominated for the “We are IH” feature, which described her as a dedicated employee and an extremely caring and giving person.

“Over the past 28 years as a nurse, Donna has lived through many health-care crises, including Anthrax, Ebola, and most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. She expresses how challenging it has been working in long-term care amidst a pandemic, and sends her gratitude to all other healthcare employees,” the article reads.

However, just six months later, her lengthy career came to end when she refused to be tested for COVID.

She said she didn’t want to be a “Creston guinea pig in an attempt to keep Bonnie Henry happy with her offensive, dictatorial and controlling medical decrees.”

The case highlights how far down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories people will go, and the life-changing altercations when they believe them.

While Maatz argued that Interior Health discriminated against her because of a disability, the Tribunal found that her reasons for not getting vaccinated changed throughout her submission.

At first, she said she was concerned about seizures, but then argued she would have an anaphylactic reaction.

The Tribunal ruled she had provided no medical evidence of how either of these issues would affect her.

The former nurse also argued that getting vaccinated went against her political beliefs.

“Ms. Maatz’ evidence centres around her contention that during the COVID-19 pandemic government overstepped its authority by mandating vaccination for healthcare workers,” the decision reads.

The Tribunal ruled that her conspiracy theories are not protected political beliefs.

However, the Tribunal also ruled that her belief about government overreach in the context of medical autonomy could be a protected political belief under BC’s Human Rights laws.

However, the Tribunal said a political belief does not extend to refusing to abide by a law such as the Public Health Order to get vaccinated.

Ultimately, the Tribunal dismissed her case.