Canada is getting a better picture of how many COVID-19 vaccines will funnel into the country this spring, with the federal government confirming a significant increase from Pfizer-BioNTech.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Friday that Canada will receive at least one million doses from Pfizer per week between March 22 and May 10.
“That’s a million doses of Pfizer alone every seven days,” Trudeau said at a press conference.
“That’s going to make a big difference.”
1:06 Coronavirus: Feds questioned on decision to increase interval between Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses
Coronavirus: Feds questioned on decision to increase interval between Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses
The influx is more than double the 444,600 doses expected next week. That’s on top of additional vaccine deliveries from Moderna, expected to bring 846,000 doses the week of March 22.
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There are now four safe and effective vaccines approved in Canada by independent regulators — Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson — which officials say will provide flexibility to the country’s plan to immunize the majority of Canadians by September.
The delivery schedules for the two most recently approved vaccines, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, have been slightly more unclear since being given the green light by Health Canada.
Under a partnership with the Serum Institute in India, Canada received its first shipment of 500,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine on March 3. The remaining 1.5 million will arrive in Canada by mid-May.
An additional 20 million doses, manufactured in the United States, will start to arrive in the spring.
Meanwhile, there is no timeline set for when the Johnson & Johnson deliveries will arrive, nor is there a confirmation on which of its two sites — in Europe and the U.S. — the doses will come from.
4:28 One dose COVID-19 vaccine now approved for use in Canada
One dose COVID-19 vaccine now approved for use in Canada
Canada’s procurement minister, Anita Anand, said Friday that she expects more fulsome delivery schedules from both companies “in the very near future.”
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“Our strategy has been, all along, to diversify our supply chains to ensure that Canadians can have product, have vaccines from multiple sources of supply, multiple suppliers and multiple countries so that we’re not negatively impacted by any control restrictions,” she said, adding that seven million doses from Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca will arrive in Canada in April alone.
“That’s the benefit of a diversified portfolio. And we’re going to see those benefits manifested over the next weeks and months.”
Canada’s vaccine rollout has been criticized as slow compared to countries like the U.S. and the U.K., in part due to early shipment delays, sluggish regulatory approvals and dosing changes.
Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, head of the Canadian COVID-19 vaccine distribution team, has stressed that Canada’s rollout would “ramp up” in the spring.
2:52 Optimism grows on Canada’s vaccine timeline speeding up
Optimism grows on Canada’s vaccine timeline speeding up – Mar 4, 2021
The rollout has, in fact, ramped up in recent weeks and supply has been restored as new vaccines have been approved. As supply grows, the rollout is expected to open up in provinces, based on their individual plans.
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Trudeau said Friday that provinces and territories have been updated with the new schedule so they can plan for mass vaccination sites.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
