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AstraZeneca

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Ontario Gears Up For More Vaccines

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More COVID vaccines are coming to Ontario.

Premier Doug Ford says it is all in preparation for phase two of their vaccination plan.

“Over 2,000,000 more doses are expected to be here before the end of March including 194,500 of the new approved AstraZeneca vaccine,” said the premier.

Ford says the plan involves giving shots to seniors and the most vulnerable.

He also calls the four-month wait for second doses “a game-changer” when it comes to getting more people vaccinated quicker.

An online booking system is also scheduled to be ready on March 15th.

During Phase Two, groups that will receive the vaccine include:

  • Older adults between 60-79 years of age;
  • Individuals with specific health conditions and some primary caregivers;
  • People who live and work in congregate settings and some primary caregivers;
  • People who live in hot spots with high rates of death, hospitalizations, and transmission; and,
  • Certain workers who cannot work from home.
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AstraZeneca Deliveries Expected Soon

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We now know when the most recently approved COVID-19 vaccine will arrive in Canada.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirms the country will be receiving its first in the coming days and weeks, with the full shipment arriving in the Spring.

“With the vaccine now approved in Canada, our first shipment of 500,000 of these doses will arrive within weeks. The remaining doses are scheduled for delivery over the next couple of months,” Trudeau says.

Minister of Public Services and Procurement Anita Anand confirms this is on top of the 20-million doses the country already secured from AstraZeneca in an earlier agreement.

Canada will receive a total over 6.5-million doses of the Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines combined by the end of March.

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UPDATED: AstraZeneca Vaccines Get Health Canada Approval

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Canada will soon have two more vaccines to combat the COVID-19 virus.

Health Canada has approved the AstraZeneca vaccine along with a related shot by the Serum Institue of India.

Dr. Supriya Sharma, a senior medical advisor with Health Canada, provided details about the vaccines during a briefing Friday morning.

Sharma said unlike the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, which are m-R-N-A based, these new vaccines are viral-vector-based.

“Viral-vector vaccines use a harmless modified version of a different virus, the vector, to deliver instructions to our cells,” said Sharma. “The cells begin to make proteins from the virus that causes COVID-19, which then prompts the body to develop an immune response.”

Sharma said the virus used in these vaccines are adenoviruses, which have been used in vaccines for decades.

She said the adenoviruses can cause common cold-like symptoms but do not cause illness.

“These are two-dose vaccines with the second dose being given between four and 12 weeks after the first. Evidence suggests that efficacy increases with longer dosing intervals,” said Sharma.

Sharma said the vaccines are about 62 per cent effective in preventing symptomatic cases of COVID-19, much lower than the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.

But she said there is “emerging, promising evidence” that is beginning to be reported from real-world use of the vaccine.

Sharma said two other vaccine submissions remain under review by Health Canada.

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Health Canada Awaiting More Data From AstraZeneca

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Health Canada says it is too soon to say when AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine could be approved for use in our country.

The federal health agency issued a statement Wednesday after the United Kingdom authorized the company’s vaccine for use.

Health Canada says it has been reviewing AstraZeneca’s vaccine since it was submitted on Oct. 1 and is expediting the review of COVID-19 vaccines.

“There is still information and data to be provided by AstraZeneca for review. Health Canada cannot provide a definite timeline for the completion of the review at this time,” the agency said.

Health Canada said it is working closely with international regulators, including those in the U.K., to share information and data on vaccines currently under review.

Federal health officials have approved two vaccines for use in Canada to date — one by Pfizer-BioNTech and the other by Moderna.