Ottawa Citizen

TASK FORCE BLAMED FOR VACCINE `DISASTER'

- TOM BLACKWELL

Born in secrecy, rife with conflict of interest, the task force that guided Ottawa in its stumbling effort to procure COVID-19 vaccine should be heavily revamped or disbanded entirely, expert witnesses argued Tuesday in a blunt dissection of Canada’s vaccine “disaster.”

The federal government was also weeks too late in negotiatin­g contracts with leading vaccine candidates, unwisely sidelined Health Canada, and went on a panicked, largely ineffectiv­e buying spree when reality sunk in, health policy critics charged before the House of Commons industry committee.

“We blew it,” said Amir Attaran, an immunology PhD and University of Ottawa health law professor. “When you take the scientific backwardne­ss, combined with the secrecy that didn’t allow outsiders to detect our missteps in 2020, you end up with the disaster we have in 2021.”

The analysis of what has become a politicall­y volatile issue for the Liberal government seemed well-received by opposition members of the committee.

But a spokesman for Procuremen­t Minister Anita Anand rejected the criticism, saying that Canada was among the first few countries to sign deals with Pfizer and Moderna, makers of the initial two vaccines approved worldwide.

And in December it became one of the first nations to actually receive any shots before production glitches interrupte­d supply, said James Fitz-Morris, Anand’s communicat­ions director.

“The idea we were late to the game is just rubbish,” he said.

Still, Canada does lag behind most industrial­ized countries and some less-developed nations in the volume of coronaviru­s vaccine actually delivered.

As of Tuesday afternoon, it had received 1.4 million doses, putting it about 50th in the world on a per-capita basis, though the government insists everyone who wants a shot will get one by the end of September.

The reasons why Canada has ended up in such a predicamen­t are less clear.

Most witnesses at Tuesday’s committee hearing said the country’s lack of domestic vaccine manufactur­ing capacity is a major factor, leaving Canada at the mercy of foreign producers and “vaccine nationalis­m.”

But other reasons for the procuremen­t troubles also surfaced, including the task force of outside experts set up by the government to advise it on the process.

Ottawa initially didn’t reveal its existence, then withheld the names of members. And it only divulged their potential conflicts of interest following negative media coverage.

As it turns out, half of the 12 members have conflicts — connection­s to firms related to the vaccine field — including the two co-chairs. Respected virologist Gary Kobinger resigned from the task force over the issue. The government says it was aware of the conflicts of interest, but deliberate­ly chose members with direct, practical experience and knowledge.

Even now, though, the government doesn’t divulge minutes of the panel’s meetings. Meanwhile, the actual contracts signed by Ottawa are also kept secret. The government says manufactur­ers insist on confidenti­ality for competitiv­e reasons, though some other countries have disclosed details of their purchases.

“If we sign contracts with private companies, we need to make the deals public — with the details — so we can understand what’s happening and what’s not happening,” Dr. Joel Lexchin, a former York University health policy professor and drug-industry watchdog, told the committee.

Had the proceeding­s of the task force been made public, outside experts could have offered feedback, early warnings, for instance, that rapidly building up domestic production capacity was crucial, said Attaran.

“If you take high-stakes decisions secretly behind closed doors … you end up in a dead end after bad decisions are made.”

As for task force conflicts, Lexchin said those members should be removed. Attaran went further, urging that the committee be completely replaced.

But others who appeared before the committee disagreed. Andrew Casey, president of industry group BIOTECanad­a, said he thought the panel had done “great work.”

Meanwhile, Attaran argued the government was much later than some countries in beginning talks with the makers of the leading vaccine candidates, and failed to offer sweeteners to foreign producers — like developmen­t funding — to ensure it ended up near the front of the line.

But Fitz-Morris said Canada was just the fourth country to purchase Pfizer’s product, and got in even sooner with Moderna. Astra Zeneca has indicated Canada was the first country without domestic production ability to sign a deal, he said.

Regardless, Pfizer will soon start shipping about 400,000 doses a week to Canada. Between it and Moderna, this country is slated to receive 84 million doses by the end of September, said the procuremen­t minister’s spokesman.

Anand eventually signed contracts with seven manufactur­ers, more per capita than any other country. Attaran suggested the deals were struck in “anguish” at Canada’s situation, even though relatively few are likely to be available before the end of the year.

Fitz-Morris dismissed the critique as a case of hindsight.

“At the time when we were signing these things, nobody had any idea which would be first,” he said.

Attaran also told the committee Health Canada should have been the lead on procuring vaccines, as he said was the case in the U.S., U.K and elsewhere.

 ?? POSTMEDIA NEWS ?? Dr. Gary Kobinger, a respected virologist, resigned from Canada's vaccine task force
over concerns about a lack of transparen­cy in that group.
POSTMEDIA NEWS Dr. Gary Kobinger, a respected virologist, resigned from Canada's vaccine task force over concerns about a lack of transparen­cy in that group.
 ??  ?? Anita Anand
Anita Anand

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