6M vaccine doses expected in early 2021: Ontario

MILLIONS OF DOSES COULD ARRIVE AS SOON AS JANUARY, AS COVID CASES GROW ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Ontario's health minister on Wednesday suggested Canada could start receiving millions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines as soon as January, providing a glimmer of hope on an otherwise dark day marked by rising cases and death counts in many provinces.

Christine Elliott said in question period that the country is set to get four million doses of the Pfizer vaccine between January and March as well as two million doses of Moderna's vaccine.

She said that 1.6 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 800,000 of the Moderna vaccine are destined for Ontario.

When asked directly to confirm the dates and numbers, federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu would only say it was “really exciting” that Canada is well-positioned to receive millions of doses from both companies.

“There are a number of steps to go through before we actually get to the point of distribution, including the regulatory review with Health Canada to ensure the safety of both vaccines,” Hajdu told reporters.

Pfizer announced Wednesday it intends to seek approval for emergency use of its novel coronavirus vaccine after new test results showed it is 95 per cent effective, is safe, and works to protect vulnerable older adults.

Hajdu said both manufacturers had also submitted for approval in Canada, which she said will allow regulators to receive and review data as it comes in.

Elliott said that once the vaccine is approved, priority will go to people in longterm care homes, hospitals and group settings — similar to the flu vaccine.

Distribution, however, can be complicated, given that both Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines need to be stored at cold temperatures. Both also require two shots, 21 days apart. “This is a major logistical challenge but we have an entire group within the ministry of health right now that are planning for that,” she said.

Canada, which has reserved enough doses to vaccinate residents several times over, is also in talks with other governments about a plan to donate shots to lower-income countries, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

The government has made deals to buy more doses per capita than any other nation, according to researchers at the Duke Global Health Innovation Center in North Carolina.

It is among a handful of wealthy nations that reserved billions of doses between them before late-stage trial data came in.

Canada could donate extra doses through the World Health Organization-backed COVAX facility, which would distribute them among recipient countries, said a Canadian government source.

The news on vaccines was a bright spot on an otherwise sombre day for many provinces struggling with the virus' fallout. Both Quebec and Ontario reported more than 30 additional deaths each on Wednesday, as well as well over 1,000 new cases.

“Cases have been increasing in elderly adults for several weeks, with those aged 80 years and older now having the highest incidence rate nationally,” said Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer.