Administering most of Canada’s coronavirus vaccines now, as opposed to reserving half of them to be used later as second doses for the first recipients, could prevent a significant amount of new symptomatic COVID-19 infections, according to new data from researchers at the University of Toronto.
The results of the modelling, which were first reported by The Globe and Mail, come amid plans from provinces such as Ontario to keep half of their initial shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine in case future deliveries of the vaccine are delayed.
Ashleigh Tuite, an epidemiologist at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health, presented her findings to Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table on Tuesday.
Based on her team’s study, Tuite told Global News that withholding fewer doses during early distribution of the vaccine — so that more people can be immunized as soon as possible — could prevent an additional 25 to 40 per cent of symptomatic COVID-19 infections, compared to a more conservative approach that would reserve half of each vaccine instalment for the second dose.
The cost of the more conservative approach would be “to delay receipt of first doses in many people who could gain substantial health benefits from earlier vaccination,” according to the paper, which is still under review.
Tuite’s and the other researchers’ findings also comes just a day after Health Canada approved Moderna’s COVID-19 shot, now the second available vaccine the country can use to immunize against the virus.
4:50 The year that changed everything
The year that changed everything
Moderna’s vaccine approval now puts pressure on whether provincial governments should hold back half of their vaccine shots due to it being easier to store and administer in nursing homes and rural areas.
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That’s because of its less stringent transport requirements than the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, a shot that has to be transported at -70 C.
In order for both vaccines to reach their maximum efficacy, two shots have to be administered over a period of several weeks. Pfizer’s second dose would have to be administered 21 days after the first shot, while Moderna’s would come after 28 days.
According to infectious disease expert and epidemiologist Dr. David Fisman, Canada should be vaccinating with as much of the doses it has on hand as fast as possible.
“The basic idea is that we actually have more and more and more vaccine coming week on week on week, so it makes no sense right now — given the number of people who are dying and given how effective this vaccine is — that we would set vaccine aside for three weeks from now, because that’s going to result in a lot more people dying because they haven’t been vaccinated at all,” Fisman told Global News.
“And in fact, you see a lot of protection right around the time that that second dose is given, which tells us that that’s not from the second dose, right, because it takes time for an immune response to develop.”
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Fisman said that we should still want to give people that second dose, but that we should administering as much of the vaccines as possible given the urgency of the pandemic.
3:22 Health Canada approves Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine
Health Canada approves Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine
A statement from Ontario said that no formal recommendations to administer more of its doses as opposed to saving them have yet been made.
It also confirmed that they would continue giving second doses to patients after they were administered their first. Saskatchewan, B.C. and New Brunswick have all said they don’t plan to hold back doses.
Dr. Peter Jüni, the scientific director of the science advisory table, says that it “seems to be safe” to invest into vaccinating as many people as we can with the doses we have now. According to Jüni, two of the presentations came to the conclusion that frontloading the doses and not reserving them in installments as second doses would be a more “efficient” strategy in tackling the spread of COVID-19.
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0:43 Coronavirus: First shipment of Moderna’s vaccine arrives in Canada
Coronavirus: First shipment of Moderna’s vaccine arrives in Canada
Newly-released recommendations from Canada’s National Advisory on Immunization (NACI) presented several ethical considerations on whether or not vaccines should be held back for a second dose or used on as many people as possible, with the committee’s report identifying factors like having an informed choice and minimizing the risk of harm versus the benefits of holding back or administering all their vaccines.
Canada’s first shipments of the Moderna vaccine, which arrived Thursday, is set to be widely distributed to Canada’s nursing homes — which house seniors at highest risk of a severe outcome from being infected — as well as to the territories.
The country is set to receive 168,000 doses by the end of December.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
