Health Canada will announce Thursday the approval of Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine, which targets sub-variants of Omicron.
Senior government sources have confirmed the upcoming announcement to CTV News.
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos is scheduled to hold a press conference at 2 p.m. that will “underline the importance of vaccination against COVID-19 as we enter the fall,” according to a media release.
Health Canada received Moderna’s application for its bivalent vaccine on June 30. A bivalent vaccine would provide protection against the original strain of COVID-19 and its Omicron sub-variants. The federal regulator is also reviewing Pfizer-BioNTech’s application, which was filed on July 25.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, previously said the country has secured an “adequate” supply of bivalent vaccines if regulators give the go-ahead for distribution.
Earlier this month, the UK became the first in the world to approve Moderna’s bivalent vaccine. On Wednesday, the US Food and Drug Administration authorized its first bivalent vaccines against COVID-19.
Experts expect another wave of the COVID-19 pandemic to hit this fall as temperatures drop and more people huddle indoors.
Although the benefits of bivalent vaccines are still being studied, emerging research suggests they could offer enhanced protection compared to currently available COVID-19 vaccines.
– with files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
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