Pfizer accelerates deliveries of 5M vaccines to Canada, J&J doses arrive end of April

OTTAWA (NEWS 1130) – Canada is going to see another acceleration of vaccine deliveries from Pfizer, as concerns grow around the AstraZeneca vaccine following new restrictions.

Pfizer had already committed to deliveries of at least a million doses each week for the months of April and May. At his COVID-19 update Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the drug maker is also accelerating deliveries for June.

“They will be moving up 5 million doses from later in the summer into June. That’ll bring our total from 4.6 million to 9.6 million doses for that month alone,” he said.

Related article: Canadians far more wary of AstraZeneca than other COVID-19 vaccines: Poll

By the end of this week, Canada will have received 9.5 million vaccines, well ahead of the original goal of 6 million.

“We know that the way to get through this is to get as many people as possible vaccinated,” Trudeau said.

As for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Procurement Minister Anita Anand says the first deliveries of the single-dose shot will begin at the end of April.

This is the first time we’ve been given a slightly more specific timeline for this vaccine, but Anand says final details are still being worked out and she can’t say how many doses will arrive in the country for the first delivery.

On Tuesday, the country is set to receive a shipment of 1.5 millions of AstraZeneca doses from the U.S. This comes in the wake of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) advising provinces not to give that vaccine to people under the age of 55 due to rare blood clot concerns. There is also a new poll showing Canadians’ trust in this vaccine is quickly eroding.

Trudeau suggests the new recommendation from NACI will not have a major impact on our overall vaccination efforts because the country has a diverse vaccine portfolio that is heavily weighted on Pfizer and Moderna.

“It means that we are still in a very good situation. But of course, we want to get more doses of more varied vaccines and ensure the continued delivery of those doses rapidly,” he said.

The prime minister ended his remarks Tuesday by asking people to follow public health measures during Easter and Passover, saying it’s not the time to travel and we need to keep our loved ones safe.

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