Health Canada will announce the approval of Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine that targets Omicron subvariants on Thursday.
Senior government sources have confirmed the upcoming announcement to CTV News.
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos plans to hold a press conference at 2 p.m. that will “highlight the importance of vaccination against COVID-19 as we head into the fall,” according to a media advisory.
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 subvariants. The federal regulator is also reviewing Pfizer-BioNTech’s application, which was filed on July 25.
Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s director of public health, has previously said the country has secured an “adequate” supply of bivalent vaccines if regulators give the green light to the rollout.
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 predict another wave of the COVID-19 pandemic will hit this fall as temperatures drop and more people flock indoors.
Although the benefits of bivalent vaccines are still being studied, emerging research suggests they could offer extended protection compared to currently available COVID-19 vaccinations.
– with archives from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press