The Government of Canada is protecting the health and safety of all Canadians, while ensuring a safe and sustainable economic recovery.
| GATINEAU, QC, Sept. 22, 2020 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is protecting the health and safety of all Canadians, while ensuring a safe and sustainable economic recovery. This includes taking steps to ensure that Canadians can access future vaccines and treatments, and that the healthcare system has the tools required for effective deployment. The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, today announced that the Government of Canada has signed agreements with Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to secure up to 72 million doses of their COVID-19 adjuvanted recombinant protein-based vaccine candidate. Based on recommendations from the COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force, the Government of Canada is signing agreements with a number of leading pharmaceutical companies to establish a guaranteed supply base of potential vaccine candidates. Agreements have previously been signed with Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax, and negotiations continue for access to other leading vaccine candidates. Currently, no vaccines have been approved to prevent COVID-19 in Canada. Many vaccines are in clinical trials or under development domestically or internationally. Once vaccines are ready, companies will need to make submissions for authorization to Health Canada. Health Canada will review the evidence of safety, efficacy and manufacturing quality for each vaccine to determine whether individual vaccines will be approved for use in Canada before they are made available to Canadians. At the same time, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, an external advisory group of vaccine and public health experts, will provide federal, provincial and territorial governments with guidance for safe and effective vaccine use for Canadians. While significant work is underway to develop vaccines to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Government of Canada is also focused on therapeutics to treat Canadians who have contracted the virus. Minister Anand announced that the Government of Canada has signed an agreement with Gilead Sciences and McKesson Canada to secure a supply of up to 150,000 vials of remdesivir, with deliveries beginning this month and continuing into early 2021. Currently, remdesivir is the only known anti-viral drug that has been shown to be effective in treating COVID-19 patients. The Government of Canada has also signed two contracts with SiO2 International Inc. to purchase syringes and vials for use in filling up to 80 million doses of vaccine, with deliveries beginning this month. Quotes “On behalf of the Public Health Agency of Canada, and based on recommendations from the COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force, we are looking to the future and readying Canada for a vaccine to enable us to emerge from this pandemic. These agreements signed to date include the three main types of vaccine candidates – known as mRNA, Protein Subunit and Viral Vector. Having a diverse portfolio of vaccines from multiple supply sources will provide assured access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines when they become available. We have also signed a number of contracts for the supplies necessary to eventually distribute vaccines, including syringes, vials, and alcohol swabs. When a vaccine is ready, Canada will be ready.” The Honourable Anita Anand “The announcement of additional vaccine candidate agreements will help us to provide a vaccine to as many Canadians as possible when one is approved by Health Canada and proven to be safe and effective. In the meantime, we will be working with provinces and territories to distribute the 150,000 vials of remdesivir to healthcare providers to treat their COVID-19 patients who need it most.” The Honourable Patty Hajdu Quick facts
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