Canada expects to receive 1.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine next week through a sharing deal with the United States, officials confirmed Thursday.
“Public Services and Procurement Canada has recently negotiated the delivery of 1.5 million doses from the U.S., expected to arrive in Canada in the next week,” Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, the head of Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution team, said at a news conference Thursday.
“When we have a confirmed delivery date to Canada, this quantity will be added to the quarterly distribution goal of vaccine doses.”
Canada has been in the midst of finalizing an agreement with its neighbour to the south that would see Ottawa receive 1.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca shot as a “loan.” In other words, Canada will eventually have to return the favour.
Through a bilateral agreement, 20 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine are expected to funnel into Canada from manufacturing plants in the U.S. over the second and third quarters of this year.
Joelle Paquette, director-general responsible for vaccine procurement at Public Services and Procurement Canada, said the 1.5 million slated to come to Canada next week will eventually be taken back by the U.S.
She said it will be subtracted by the U.S. from the 20-million bilateral agreement “for their own use.”
“We are still working with AstraZeneca and expect to have a delivery schedule for them in the coming week on the 20 million doses of our bilateral agreement,” she said.
1:11 ‘No indication’ India’s hold on AstraZeneca shots will impact Canada, officials say
‘No indication’ India’s hold on AstraZeneca shots will impact Canada, officials say
However, delivery schedules for the balance of the shots may remain murky.
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On top of that, Health Canada is now reviewing two American manufacturing facilities that weren’t part of the agency’s initial authorization.
Health Canada’s chief medical adviser, Dr. Supriya Sharma, said Thursday that two facilities slated to manufacture AstraZeneca vaccines in the U.S. are currently under review “to make sure they meet the regulatory requirements” to produce the drug for Canadians.
In the interim, Health Canada will allow the vaccines from the yet-to-be-approved plants to come into Canada to be stored “so they will be in Canada for quick distribution” once they’re given the seal of approval to be administered.
“It’s just more making sure that those manufacturing facilities have the appropriate checks and balances in place to ensure the quality of the vaccine. So, good manufacturing process,” said Sharma.
“It’s not like a full vaccine authorization where we’re looking at clinical trials… It’s a much shorter process. We expect that to be completed in the coming days.”
2:58 Health Canada official comments on AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine concerns
Health Canada official comments on AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine concerns
While a delivery schedule has not been established for AstraZeneca doses from the U.S., a shipment of about one million AstraZeneca doses made by the Serum Institute in India is expected to arrive sometime in April. The remaining 500,000 doses from that agreement will funnel into the country in May, for a total of two million from that deal.
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As for the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, a delivery schedule has yet to materialize.
Fortin said discussions are “ongoing” and that Canada’s contracted 10 million doses are “expected by September,” though he provided no further detail.
By contrast, Canada’s other approved shots — Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna — are coming into the country with increasing amounts and increasing clarity.
2:04 Canada on track to receive more than 12 million Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses between April and June
Canada on track to receive more than 12 million Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses between April and June – Mar 18, 2021
Next week alone, Canada is expecting a shipment of 1.2 million doses from Pfizer. From there, the company plans to ship approximately one million doses every week from April to June.
Moderna is now shipping its shots every two weeks instead of three. Its next shipment is expected to arrive the first week of April and should include 855,000 doses. The following shipment, two weeks later, will jump to 1.2 million doses.
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This week, Canada’s vaccine rollout hit a double-digit milestone, as 11 per cent of the country’s adult population has now received at least one dose of a COVID-19 shot.
Canada’s deputy chief public health officer, Dr. Howard Njoo, acknowledged the milestone, but said 11 per cent isn’t enough to stop the spread of the virus, especially as more transmissible and possibly more deadly versions of the virus continue to pose a “significant threat.”
TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.
The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.
The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.
Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
