Vaccines made in Quebec “prepare for a future influenza pandemic,” says Duclos.

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In anticipation of a future influenza pandemic, the Government of Canada has secured a new contract with pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline to ensure access to influenza vaccines.

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The deal was announced Friday by Federal Health Minister Jean Eve Duclos at the GSK facility in Santofor, where the vaccine is produced.

The agreement requires GSK to provide up to 80 million pandemic influenza vaccines per year (assuming a two-dose regimen) as needed, and a minimum of 4 million per year for use in publicly funded programs. Guarantee the administration of seasonal influenza vaccine. The first delivery is scheduled for this fall.

The contract spans four years and you have the option of extending it to five one year.

“We will prepare for a future influenza pandemic,” Duclos said on Friday. “The new agreement with GSK will allow Canada to continue safe access to influenza vaccines manufactured here in Quebec.”

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Duclos said GSK, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, is the only self-sufficient Canadian producer of influenza vaccines. By preparing for the flu epidemic through the company, “Canada’s supply can be prevented from being endangered by border closures, commercial or transportation problems.”

For confidentiality reasons, the value of the contract is not disclosed.

According to Duclos, Canada has invested $ 1.8 billion in 32 projects related to biomanufacturing, including vaccines and other medicines, to strengthen the country’s ability to intervene in the event of a pandemic. This includes an investment of over $ 450 million in 11 projects in Quebec.

The struggle Canada faced in the COVID-19 pandemic reminds us that we must be ready to face a future health crisis, Duclos said.

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“This applies not only to the protection of systems, but also to the protection of health care workers, and, as we have seen in the last two years, not only to financial well-being, but also to the protection of social organizations.” Said. “If there is only one lesson to be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is the important importance of vaccination.”

According to Duclos, some estimates indicate that the COVID-19 vaccine saved about 20 million lives worldwide in 2021.

According to Duclos, the new flu deal with GSK, which has been a 20-year relationship between the parties to such a vaccine, would have progressed without the current pandemic.

“We knew that seasonal flu was with us for a long time, so we certainly wanted to do it-it will last for a long time,” he said. “The influenza pandemic occurs every 10 to 40 years — last in 2009 with H1N1 — so it’s already 13 years.

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“Climate change, frequent contact with natural space, logging, urbanization, and rapid and frequent migration in countries and regions allow this type of virus to evolve more rapidly and thus affect population more quickly. Do it to give. “

COVID-19 shows how harmful a pandemic can be, which gives the government more confidence in trading, Duclos added.

Ranya El-Masri, Vice President of Government and Market Access at GSK Canada, said the deal was “most important to us.”

“(It) provides Canadians with a guarantee that seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccines will be available for products manufactured in Santofor, Quebec, Canada,” she said. “I am very proud of the work I do at GSK to protect children and adults through immunization.”

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Duclos said the flu vaccine campaign will be particularly important this fall as COVID-19 still exists and the healthcare system is already struggling.

“The combination of these two respiratory illnesses needs to be particularly efficient and united when it’s time for us to protect ourselves,” he said, Canada than all other G7 countries except the United States. Also added that booster vaccination rates are low. , Despite surpassing most other countries in the first two doses.

“During the pandemic, vaccines proved to be the best way to protect ourselves, our families, and our colleagues,” Duclos said.

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