OTTAWA —
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that the federal government has signed a deal to secure up to 26,000 doses of a COVID-19 therapeutic drug from Eli Lilly, with the option to receive thousands more.
He also sought to temper Canadians’ expectations around the timing and rollout of an eventual vaccine or vaccines to immunize against the novel coronavirus.
“To keep Canadians safe, we need access to as many potential vaccines and treatments as possible,” Trudeau said during his Rideau Cottage address on Tuesday.
Trudeau said that, while there has been promising news about some vaccine candidates that Canada will receive millions of doses of, it will still be months before vaccines are expected to arrive on Canadian soil.
The prime minister has previously said that Canada is expecting initial doses — to be distributed on a priority basis — in the early months of 2021 once granted approval by Health Canada, but several other nations are making plans to begin administering vaccines next month.
Among the promising candidates so far are Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca, all of which Canada has begun the domestic approval process for. However, Trudeau said that because it’s been years since Canada’s had domestic production capacity for vaccines, the countries where these pharmaceutical companies are based will “obviously” prioritize vaccinating their citizens before shipping doses internationally.
As a result, the federal government is working with the dates vaccine companies are providing them.
“We have reached out and have actually one of the very best vaccine portfolios of any country around the world with far more doses for Canadians, potentially then we actually have Canadian population. That’s because we don’t know which vaccines are going to be most effective, which ones are going to arrive early, but we have done everything we can to ensure that Canadians get these vaccines as quickly as possible,” Trudeau said, acknowledging Canada is at a “disadvantage,” because it is relying on other nations.
“But it is premature to start, you know, crossing out [or] circling dates on a calendar or saying that ‘this vaccine is going to arrive in this amount, on this day, in this community,’ because there’s still a lot of work to do between now and then, but we’re on it,” he said.
The prime minister said that Canada has begun funding domestic vaccine production capacity because “we never want to be caught short again,” but it will take “years” to get in place and likely won’t help Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine situation, but will be in place should there be future pandemics.
Updating on the status of the logistical planning, Procurement Minister Anita Anand said that the federal government has signed contracts for freezers capable of storing vaccines. To-date the government has the capacity to store up to 33.5 million vaccines at cold temperatures and enough needles and syringes to administer 24 million doses with more en route. By next week, Anand said she expects contracts will be awarded to provide the government with dry ice as well as end-to-end distribution to assist in the transportation of these vaccines.
The government says it’s keeping a close eye on the approval processes for vaccines in allied countries, but isn’t expected to fast-track authorization until the domestic evaluation is complete, which Trudeau said is being done to assure Canadians the vaccines are safe, in hopes that’ll encourage the maximum number of people get immunized.
Logistical planning about the rollout is underway, but details remain sparse other than the military likely playing a role and all provinces and territories needing to provide input. Trudeau said Tuesday, the federal Liberals will have more to share once the “mobilization plan” is “up and running.”
EMERGENCY THERAPY APPROVED
Over the weekend, Health Canada authorized the monoclonal antibody therapy for emergency use in helping treat COVID-19 infections, and Canada will begin receiving doses over the next three months.
The single antibody treatment called bamlanivimab has been approved for use in adults and children aged 12 or older with mild to moderate coronavirus infections.
Lilly says the treatment is for those who risk progressing to severe COVID-19 symptoms or hospitalization. It is not authorized for patients who are already hospitalized or require oxygen.
Bamlanivimab is the first monoclonal antibody to be authorized for use in treating the novel coronavirus and was granted emergency-use by the Food and Drug Administration in the U.S. at the beginning of November.
The antibody therapy, which must be infused in a hospital or other health-care setting, was developed in partnership with the Canadian biotech company AbCellera, which the federal government has provided funded to over the course of the pandemic.
“To the scientists and researchers across the country: Thank you for everything that you do. Just like always, your dedication and expertise is making Canadians heathier and safer, and is building a better tomorrow. Canada is lucky to have thousands of world-class scientists and researchers,” said Trudeau.
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.
