National

Novavax touts non-mRNA COVID vaccine, future of domestic production remains uncertain

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Oct, 2023 12:28 PM

The last remaining manufacturer to offer an alternative to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in Canada is boasting about the importance of having several available vaccine options — though the company is providing little certainty about its ability to manufacture the shot domestically.

Maryland-based Novavax held a press conference to tout the safety and efficacy of its updated vaccine, which targets more recent strains of COVID-19, and the importance of having an option for people who can't or won't accept an mRNA shot.

The new formulation is awaiting Health Canada approval.

The federal government has promised to make the Novavax vaccine in Canada at the purpose-built National Research Council's biologics manufacturing centre in Montreal, but it has not yet been approved to start bulk production.

This summer, Ottawa amended its purchasing agreement with Novavax, and now has the ability to end the deal if bulk production doesn't start by the end of 2024.

The company's Canadian director Andrew Boston says it is currently producing test lots at the facility and hopes to begin bulk production next year, but he hasn't said more about production plans at the facility.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Lack of B.C. transplant surgeons means donated kidneys are sent elsewhere: doctors

Dr. David Harriman, a kidney transplant surgeon at Vancouver General Hospital, said between eight and 10 surgeons are needed in B.C. so residents waiting for a kidney can benefit from the organs that were donated in the province. The B.C. Health Ministry said the province had six kidney transplant surgeons in 2018.

Lack of B.C. transplant surgeons means donated kidneys are sent elsewhere: doctors

New Chinese Canadian Museum opens its doors in historic Vancouver Chinatown building

The museum opens its permanent location in Chinatown's historic Wing Sang Building after more than six years of planning, starting with then-premier John Horgan mandating the province's Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry to establish the institution.

New Chinese Canadian Museum opens its doors in historic Vancouver Chinatown building

Family appeals to public on one-year anniversary of Port Coquitlam shooting

Around 1 A-M on June 30th last year, police responded to reports of gunshots. Officers arrived to find 37-year old Mehdi “Damian” Eslahian suffering from gunshot wounds outside a home in Port Coquitlam, and he died at the scene.

Family appeals to public on one-year anniversary of Port Coquitlam shooting

B.C. must urgently change forest strategies or face more wildfire disasters: report

British Columbia's independent forests watchdog is calling for the provincial government to make critical changes to how it manages forests to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires. It comes as the largest wildfire in the province's history, the Donnie Creek wildfire, continues to burn out of control in the remote northeast.

B.C. must urgently change forest strategies or face more wildfire disasters: report

BOC outlook survey

The Bank of Canada's latest business outlook survey suggests businesses still anticipate larger-than-normal wage and price increases over the next year. The central bank reports expectations are shifting closer to what they were before the pandemic.

BOC outlook survey

B.C. health authority issues drug alert after benzodiazepines found in vape juice

Fraser Health issued an overdose alert Thursday saying the juice that tested positive contained cannabis and suspected synthetic cannabinoids and was sold in refillable, unmarked and unbranded cartridges. It did not specify where the product was sold.