By Steve Scherer and Allison Martell
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada will succeed in vaccinating its population despite “short-lived interruptions” in the supply of COVID-19 vaccines and is working closely with the new US government to fight the disease, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday.
Trudeau’s liberal government is under pressure over the slow implementation of the vaccination program, which is partly due to Pfizer Inc temporarily reducing its promised deliveries and temporarily delaying Moderna Inc.’s doses.
“Obviously with this global supply chain around new products and production scaling up … there are weekly weekly interruptions. But we are still very much on track to meet the commitments and get a lot of vaccines to Canadians as soon as possible.” Trudeau said in an interview.
Trudeau promised that tens of millions of doses would arrive in the coming months and reiterated that every Canadian seeking vaccination would be vaccinated by September.
As part of an effort to curb the spread of the disease, Canada and the United States have closed their joint border for non-essential travel. Trudeau said he and the new US President Joe Biden had agreed on a joint approach to the fight against COVID-19.
“We are working very carefully on all aspects of it, from borders to scientific research to vaccinations,” he said.
“Our talks continue with the US on supply chains,” he said without giving details. Last year, tensions arose between Canada and the government of then-President Donald Trump over delays in the provision of personal protective equipment.
Last year, Trump also signed an executive order aimed at keeping U.S. vaccines in the United States. Trudeau did not give a direct answer when asked if he would pressure Biden to cancel the order.
Canada does not yet have its own vaccine factory and is dependent on foreign suppliers.
Separately, Federal Purchasing Minister Anita Anand said delivery of AstraZeneca Plc’s COVID-19 vaccine could begin before the end of March, if Canada’s health regulator approves its use.
AstraZeneca Canada filed an ongoing vaccination application with Health Canada in October and is awaiting approval from the Drug Regulator. Health Canada is expected to complete its review soon.
In a separate briefing, federal officials confirmed that Canada’s most recent shipment of Moderna Inc’s COVID-19 vaccine contained 22% fewer doses than originally expected, and that the next shipment, which would be in three weeks, would also be short.
Fortin added that Moderna had worked in good faith to deliver the doses to Canada as quickly as possible, noting that the obstacles would be temporary.
The delivery of the Pfizer Inc. vaccine is expected to increase later this month.
Trudeau’s government is also being criticized for using COVAX, a global initiative aimed at buying low-income countries. Canada will receive 1.9 million doses of AstraZeneca from the initiative.
“Our government will never apologize for doing everything in its power to get Canadians vaccinated as quickly as possible,” Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told lawmakers.
(Reporting by Steve Scherer in Ottawa and Allison Martell in Toronto; additional reporting by David Ljunggren and Julie Gordon in Ottawa; editing by Mark Potter and Daniel Wallis)