The Public Health Agency of Canada says it expects more than 640,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses from the pharmaceutical giants this week, which would represent the largest number of deliveries in a single week.
Pfizer and Moderna will ship more than 475,000 injections this week before dropping it to 445,000 per week to fulfill its commitment to deliver 4 million injections by the end of March.
Canada will also receive 168,000 shots this week from Moderna, which ships its doses every three weeks. Unlike the Pfizer-BioNTech shots, Moderna’s are largely destined for northern and remote communities.
The expected influx of vaccine shots follows news on Friday that the millionth Canadian had received a first dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.
Several provinces have moved to expand their vaccination offerings beyond the first priority groups in long-term care homes and front-line health workers thanks to the vaccine influx over the past two weeks.
At least three provinces — Nova Scotia, Ontario and Alberta — announced details for getting vaccines to seniors living in the community.
There was also evidence last week that one dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine could be almost as good as two, and news that the vaccine might not need to be kept extraordinarily cold as previously believed.
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