As autumn draws near, the Federal Government is preparing for the launch of new COVID-19 vaccines; however, so far, health officials are yet to give their stamp of approval. As of a recent Thursday afternoon, Health Canada continued to critically analyze submissions from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, yet there were no updates on the present COVID-19 vaccine composition, revealed Mark Johnson, an official spokesperson for both Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).
Johnson emphasized that a specialized scientific team is urgently reviewing these submissions. He further detailed that factors like the submission’s timing, review duration, official approvals, and the manufacturer’s vaccine supply influence the authorization process. Since this process is still in progress, Johnson refrained from confirming the production and distribution cost for the new vaccine or how many doses Canada will receive.
Previously developed vaccines have proven effective against a variety of COVID-19 variants, such as the Omicron BA.4/BA.5-adapted bivalent vaccine. Nonetheless, the prospective vaccine, pending approval, aims specifically at the most recent variations of the virus, which have been causing a surge in hospitalizations across the country.
Dr. Shehzad Iqbal from Moderna Canada, believes this variant-adapted vaccine would increase the chances of a highly primed immune response. The measures are aimed at the most recent COVID-19 variant, labelled as XBB.1.5 Omicron, including the subvariants BA.2.86 and EG.5.1.
Professor Dawn Bowdish, Canada Research Chair in Aging and Immunity, highlights how drastically the virus has altered in morphology since the pandemic outbreak. She now regards the original version of the COVID-19 virus as an extinct “ancestral virus”. Previous vaccines were developed according to the original form, mixed with Omicron variants. However, Bowdish admitted that the need for protection against the original virus is now irrelevant.
In the context of booster shots, only 5.7% of individuals in Canada received a COVID-19 booster shot in the initial six months of this year. Dr. Iqbal understands people’s fatigue with the pandemic; however, he warns against complacency, underscoring that nature continually evolves. People had hoped that COVID-19 would be controlled with annual shots similar to the flu or a once-in-a-lifetime vaccination, akin to measles. Bowdish however, points out that unlike the flu which has one season, COVID-19 fluctuates with different variants throughout the year, hence the need for regularly updated vaccines.
Looking into the availability of the new vaccine, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) proposes a course for the authorized age groups to receive a dose of the new vaccine this fall, at least six months following their last COVID-19 vaccine or a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Johnson, however, stated it’s premature to estimate the distribution timeline for the vaccines, considering Health Canada is still reviewing submissions. If approved, the government plans to initiate a national campaign on wellness, which includes vaccination guidance, aimed at reducing the overall respiratory illness burden on the healthcare systems.
This new formulation of the vaccine is also under review by health authorities worldwide, including the U.S.A. and Europe, as disclosed by a Pfizer spokesperson.
