Procuring vaccines for COVID-19
Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is working with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), Health Canada and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada to identify and procure potential vaccine candidates and supplies.
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COVID-19 vaccine agreements
On behalf of PHAC, and based on advice from the COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force, PSPC is leading negotiations and finalizing agreements with suppliers of COVID-19 vaccine candidates.
To date, the Government of Canada has invested over $1 billion to secure access to promising vaccine candidates.
This includes up-front payments that companies require to support vaccine development, testing and at-risk manufacturing. Subsequent payments are contingent on vaccines passing clinical trials and obtaining regulatory approval.
These investments ensure Canada’s earliest possible access to the production of an approved COVID-19 vaccine.
All vaccine candidates will require Health Canada authorization prior to being used to vaccinate anyone in Canada.
| Supplier | Doses | Authorized | Anticipated delivery start |
|---|---|---|---|
| AstraZeneca | 20 million | AstraZeneca / COVISHIELD authorization | March 2021 |
| Verity Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc./Serum Institute of India (in collaboration with AstraZeneca Canada Inc.) | 2 million | AstraZeneca / COVISHIELD authorization | March 2021 |
| Moderna | 44 million | Moderna authorization | December 2020 |
| Pfizer | Up to 76 million | Pfizer authorization | December 2020 |
| Johnson & Johnson Table 1 Note * | Up to 38 million | Johnson & Johnson authorization | April 2021 |
| Medicago | Up to 76 million | No | Pending Health Canada authorization |
| Novavax | Up to 76 million | No | Pending Health Canada authorization |
| Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline | Up to 72 million | No | Pending Health Canada authorization |
Table 1 Note
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Future vaccine supply
The Government of Canada is securing access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines now and into the future. Canada has secured COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer for 2022 and 2023, with options to extend into 2024.
In addition to providing booster vaccine doses, the agreement provides flexibility to procure Pfizer’s new COVID-19 vaccine adaptations, such as those to protect against mutations or variants of concern and vaccines developed for younger populations.
As part of the agreement with Pfizer:
- Canada has secured access to a guaranteed 35 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccines for 2022, with options for up to 30 million more
- For 2023, Canada has secured access to a guaranteed 30 million doses, with options for 30 million more
- 2024 is an option year. If this option is exercised, Canada will have access to another 30 million doses, with options for an additional 30 million
These doses are in addition to the 48 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine arriving before the end of September 2021 as part of Canada’s existing agreement.
COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility
The Government of Canada is participating in the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility, a global procurement mechanism that will help develop and deliver safe, equitable and accessible COVID-19 vaccines. Participation in the COVAX Facility also provides Canadians potential access to 6 additional vaccine candidates.
The Government of Canada is committing approximately $220 million to the facility to procure up to 15 million vaccine doses for everyone in Canada. An additional $220 million will be channeled through the COVAX Advance Market Commitment to purchase doses for low and middle income countries, increasing their access to a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine.
Vaccine-related supplies
The Government of Canada also continues to purchase the necessary supplies for the administration of different vaccines. Contracts are in place for personal protective equipment and ancillary supplies, such as:
- needles
- syringes
- swabs
- gauze
We have put in place contracts for the supplies required to administer nearly 75 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, including syringes, needles and gauze. To date, we have received enough supplies to administer more than 74 million doses.
Canada has ordered 282 million syringes of varying sizes to accommodate a range of requirements in the administration of vaccines. This includes 192 million 1 millilitre syringes of which 179.7 million are low-dead volume syringes and 10 million are ultra-low-dead volume syringes. Canada has also ordered 81 million low-dead volume needles.
End-to-end logistics
The Government of Canada has awarded a contract to FedEx Express Canada and Innomar Strategies Inc., for an end-to-end COVID-19 logistics solution for COVID-19 vaccines.
Government of Canada awards contract to distribute COVID-19 vaccine from coast to coast to coast
The contract will support the distribution of vaccines across Canada. Specifically, working under the direction of PHAC’s National Operations Centre, led by Major-General Dany Fortin, FedEx Express Canada and Innomar Strategies Inc. will provide a variety of services that will assist in warehousing and transportation to provincial and territorial authorities and Indigenous partners to support timely and efficient vaccine administration across the country.
Freezers and dry ice
Given the complexity of vaccine distribution, including the need to transport and store vaccines at specific temperatures, PSPC is also procuring other goods and services required to support the eventual distribution of a vaccine to everyone in Canada.
Freezers and refrigerators
The Government of Canada has now purchased 600 freezers and 100 refrigerators.
PSPC, on behalf of PHAC, has awarded contracts for the purchase of:
- 389 freezers at -80 degrees Celsius
- 100 freezers at -20 degrees Celsius
- 111 fridge/freezers combo at -20 degrees Celsius
- 100 refrigerators
Dry ice
The Government of Canada has awarded standing offers for the national delivery of tens of thousands of kilograms of dry ice weekly, on an as-needed basis to 10 Canadian companies:
- ATES Medical, located in Quebec, with national delivery capacity
- Biogivre Inc., located in Quebec, with national delivery capacity
- Calgary Dry Ice, located in Alberta, delivering to southern Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia
- Camelyon Group, located in Ontario, with national delivery capacity
- Co2blast Ltd., located in Alberta, delivering to Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia
- Dry Ice & Gases Co., located in Ontario, delivering to Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba
- Fraser Valley Dry Ice Inc., located in British Columbia, with national delivery capacity
- ICE-ASAP, located in Ontario, delivering to southern Ontario
- Praxair Canada Inc., located in Ontario, with national delivery capacity
- VitalAire Canada Inc., located in Ontario, with national delivery capacity
The provinces and territories are able to issue call-ups against these offers directly, to meet immediate needs without delay.
National vaccine management information technology platform
On behalf of PHAC, PSPC is contracting a service provider to build further functionality into PHAC’s current operational and well-developed surveillance and coverage information technology (IT) systems. This enhanced national vaccine management IT platform (NVMIP) will help manage vaccine rollout, administration and reporting on a go forward basis, as the volume of deliveries increases.
- Requests for Proposals for the NVMIP were issued directly to qualified suppliers on December 12, 2020
- On January 7, 2021, a contract was awarded for the NVMIP to Deloitte Inc. with a value of $16,138,945.90, taxes included
News
- Government of Canada secures vaccine supply beyond 2021 (April 23, 2021)
- Canada to receive 2 million doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (February 26, 2021)
- Public Services and Procurement Canada has signed agreements with seven companies to secure access to seven COVID-19 vaccine candidates (November 19, 2020)
- AstraZeneca: New agreements to secure additional vaccine Candidates for COVID-19 (September 25, 2020)
- Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline: Government of Canada signs new agreement to secure additional vaccine candidate and treatment for COVID-19 (September 22, 2020)
- Medicago: Prime Minister announces funding to advance the development of Canadian COVID-19 vaccine technologies (October 23, 2020)
- Johnson & Johnson and Novavax: New measures to ensure the supply of future vaccines and therapies against COVID-19 (August 31, 2020)
- Pfizer and Moderna: Government of Canada announces major steps in treating and preventing COVID-19 through vaccines and therapies (August 5, 2020)
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