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CANADA’S HEALTH REGULATOR has approved Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Health Canada posted on its website that the vaccine made by US drug manufacturer Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech has been authorised.
Dr Supriya Sharma, chief medical advisor at Health Canada, said: “This is a critical milestone. Canadians can have confidence in our rigorous review process, and that the vaccine was only authorised only after a thorough assessment of the evidence demonstrated that it met Canada’s strict standards for safety, efficacy and quality.”
Health Canada said terms of the approval require the manufacturer to continue providing information on the safety, efficacy and quality of the vaccine.
Canada is set to receive up to 249,000 doses this month and 4 million doses of the vaccine by March.
The UK began vaccinations with the shot made by Pfizer and BioNTech yesterday.
US regulators have also released their first scientific evaluation of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine and confirmed it offers strong protection.
Vaccines are emerging from an all-out worldwide race and are reaching the market less than a year after the virus was identified – a remarkable scientific achievement that shaved years off the usual process.
The encouraging developments come as coronavirus continues surging across much of the world. The virus has claimed more than 1.5 million lives.
US Food and Drug Administration scientists are meeting tomorrow, when the agency’s independent advisers will debate if the evidence is strong enough to recommend vaccinating millions of Americans.
Sean Marett, BioNTech’s chief business and chief commercial officer, said: “It is encouraging to see that our mRNA vaccine is now authorised in Canada. Following UK and Bahrain, it is the third country to approve use of our vaccine within a week.”
US FDA scientists reanalysed data and found the Pfizer vaccine appears safe and more than 90% effective across patients of different ages, races and underlying health conditions.
Health Canada said the vaccine is for use in people 16 years of age or older, but noted Pfizer-BioNTech are running further clinical trials on children of all age groups and that could change.
Canada recently amended the contract with Pfizer so that it would deliver up to 249,000 doses this month. That will mean about 124,500 of the highest risk Canadians will get vaccinated at first as two doses are required per person a few weeks apart.
Pfizer and BioNTech said it will supply a minimum of 20 million doses to Canada through 2021 and as many as 76 million.
Canada has contracts with six other vaccine makers as well.
The Canadian government has said 14 distribution centres will be located in large cities initially. There will be at least one in each province and two each in Canada’s four largest provinces.
“This is phenomenal news for all Canadians as we take the next step toward ending this pandemic. As soon as vaccines arrive on Ontario soil, we will be ready to deliver and administer them,” Ontario premier Doug Ford said in a tweet.
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Dear European Medicines Agency please get a move on! Sooner rather than later…
This EU Agency is funded by and serves 26 countries with a combined population of 500 million. Yet Canada and the UK each managed to evaluate and approve this vaccine faster than the EU. Is this another glaring and very real example of EU bureaucracy getting in the way of progress?
Not sure
So, the big question i pose ( presuming you’ve done your research ) is this: Will you accept the vaccination? Reply below and illustrate the reasons for your answer.
@Sean Kelly: Yes. Because I’m not a raving anti-vaxxer lunatic. That’s not to suggest there can be legitimate concerns, but I would urge those who do, to do some research, ask a medical professional and stop listening to Aunt Karen on Facebook.
@Sean Kelly: you 1st
@Sean Kelly: “Mind your own business “
@Sean Kelly: Yes…. the government is going from one lockdown to the other. If I would visit my parents my son would have to stay away from school, I couldn’t get blood tests during lockdown and had to do them at home, I miss music which seems to be outlawed in this country, the amount of times have seen friends indoors is 3.
I had suicides and migrations of friends citing the restrictions, I would do anything to get it over.
@Sean Kelly: yes, because even if there are some small adverse affects in rare occasions, a vaccine is far safer than the virus itself. Thousands of people die every day from the virus. No one, not one, has had anything more serious than an allergic flare up with the vaccine. It’s a no brainer for me
@Sean Kelly: your asking. Why not provide your answer.
@barry moore: because he hasn’t got two brain cells to rub together
@Sean Kelly: yes, because I trust the medical scientists. I have never met anyone who has refused to go to the hospital for treatment when they get sick or take medication for it. Yet people freak out about vaccines. Every single medication on the market from chemotherapy to aspirin, from Lemsip to medicine for blood pressure issues, everything, carries a leaflet with potential side effects including death. Nothing is 100% safe. But we are in the middle of a global pandemic that has killed nearly 1.5 million people and restricted the lives of every person on the planet and this could be the way to get back to our lives. That’s why I will take it.
Will this mean Canada will be finishing lock downs?
@Jay: eventually. That’s the whole point.
@Jay: It will take many months to reach herd immunity. Christmas has been cancelled.
have your say