Canada is scheduled to receive its first vaccines against COVID-19 next week.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the largest mass immunization effort in Canadian history will begin next week, as tough new measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 take effect in provinces ranging from Prince Edward Island to Ontario.
Trudeau said that, by the end of December, Canada should receive up to 250,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech.
Health Canada approval of the Pfizer vaccine is expected this week and the first shipments to Canada are on track to arrive next week.
Immunization requires two doses administered weeks apart, so the initial batch would be enough for nearly 125,000 Canadians to get inoculated against COVID-19.
The vaccine, which must be stored in ultracold temperatures, is to be delivered to 14 sites across the country, with doses divvied up among the provinces on a per-capita basis. Ottawa has said that it is aiming to immunize three million Canadians during the first three months of 2021, with vulnerable people, such as seniors and certain health-care workers, first in line.
Meanwhile, Prince Edward Island entered what it's calling a two-week "circuit-breaker" lockdown after seven new cases of the virus were reported over the weekend. Restaurant dining rooms, fitness facilities, bingo halls and libraries are closed, while social gatherings are capped at 10 people and stores are limited to half capacity.
Ontario reported 1,925 new virus cases on Monday, hitting a new record. Premier Doug Ford said Monday that vulnerable seniors, their caregivers and health-care workers will be among the first to receive the vaccine. Retired military general Rick Hillier, who is leading Ontario's vaccine task force, said the province should be able to vaccinate 1.2 million people during the first three months of 2021.
