Canada to receive early access to Moderna COVID-19 vaccine

From: Public Services and Procurement Canada

News release

December 15, 2020 - Gatineau, Quebec - Public Services and Procurement Canada

The Government of Canada is delivering on its commitment to ensure that Canadians have access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines, as soon as possible.

Today, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, announced that following successful negotiations and contingent on Health Canada authorization of the vaccine, Canada will be able to access 168,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in December 2020.

These are part of the guaranteed 40 million doses, and up to a total of 56 million doses, that Canada has secured through its existing agreement with Moderna. As with all COVID-19 vaccine candidates, the Moderna vaccine must be authorized by Health Canada before being administered to Canadians.

The 168,000 doses, which could arrive in December 2020, will support the first delivery of vaccines to Canada’s north. The logistical planning for the delivery of Moderna doses is complete, and shipments to Canada could begin within 48 hours of regulatory approval.

The Moderna vaccine would be the first delivered through the end-to-end COVID-19 logistics services contract awarded to FedEx Express Canada and Innomar Strategies Inc.

The Government of Canada will continue to conduct dry-run exercises to confirm ordering and shipping processes for additional vaccines as they become available. These dry-run exercises are important to ensure that the Provinces and Territories have the necessary infrastructure and equipment in place and are able to plan to effectively and efficiently administer COVID-19 vaccines as they roll-out.

Moderna submitted an application for regulatory review of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate under Health Canada’s interim order on October 12, 2020. Results of this review are expected soon.  Health Canada will only authorize a vaccine once it has been shown to be safe, effective and of good quality.

Quotes

“The Government of Canada continues to do everything possible to protect Canadians from COVID-19. This includes securing the world’s most extensive portfolio of vaccines and taking all necessary measures to ready the country to receive doses once they are authorized for use.”

The Honourable Anita Anand
Minister of Public Services and Procurement

Quick facts

  • Up to 168,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine will arrive in a series of shipments.

  • The Government of Canada has signed agreements with the following companies to secure access to their COVID-19 vaccine candidates:

    • Moderna, which will supply up to 56 million doses of its messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine candidate mRNA-1273.
    • Pfizer, which will supply up to 76 million doses of its mRNA vaccine candidate developed with BioNTech, BNT162b2.
    • Medicago, which will supply up to 76 million doses of its virus-like particle vaccine candidate.
    • AstraZeneca, which will supply 20 million doses of its viral vector vaccine candidate AZD1222.
    • Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline, which will supply up to 72 million doses of their protein subunit vaccine candidate.
    • Johnson & Johnson, which will supply up to 38 million doses of its viral vector vaccine candidate Ad26.COV2.S.
    • Novavax, which will supply up to 76 million doses of its protein subunit vaccine candidate NVX-CoV2373.

  • Health Canada will continue to review evidence of safety, efficacy, and manufacturing quality for each vaccine candidate as it becomes available to decide whether the product will be authorized for use in Canada.

  • Health Canada is currently reviewing the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and is on track for a regulatory decision to be made soon.

  • At this time, the only vaccine authorized for the prevention of COVID-19 in Canada is the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

  • The Government of Canada has purchased 422 freezers to store COVID-19 vaccines.

  • The Government of Canada has put in place 6 standing offers for the weekly delivery of dry ice, as required, to support the storage and transport of COVID-19 vaccines.

Associated links

Contacts

Cecely Roy
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Anita Anand
343-549-7293
cecely.roy@canada.ca

Media Relations
Public Services and Procurement Canada
819-420-5501
media@pwgsc-tpsgc.gc.ca

Cole Davidson
Office of the Honourable Patty Hajdu
Minister of Health
613-957-0200

Media Relations
Health Canada
613-957-2983
hc.media.sc@canada.ca

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