Canada Ordered 37 Million Syringes For A COVID-19 Vaccine & That's Almost 1 Per Person
That's a lot of needles! COVID-19 vaccine progress in Canada is coming along and the federal government is ordering 37 million syringes for the future. That would almost be enough to vaccinate the entire population.
According to the Toronto Star, Canada's Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand told reporters, "We are making sure that when a vaccine is ready, Canada will be ready."
Now the federal government has signed a contract with the Canadian branch of Becton Dickinson, a global medical tech giant, for 37 million syringes.
Anand also noted that the government is working to get other supplies that will be needed for what will eventually be systematic "mass vaccinations."
The Statistics Canada website shows the population is currently just a little bit more than 38,000,000.
So, those needles would almost be enough to make sure that everyone gets the vaccine.
Justin Trudeau also addressed the fact that his government is continually working to get equipment and supplies that are needed during this pandemic.
"We've signed a contract for millions of syringes to have the supplies needed once a vaccine is ready," he said.
Health Canada has authorized 38 clinical trials for COVID-19 drugs and vaccines.
Health Canada approved the first Canadian clinical trials for a COVID-19 vaccine back in May.
Those will take place at the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia.
Along with getting all of those syringes to help with vaccination, the National Research Council of Canada will be working with manufacturers.
That will ensure that if those trials are successful, the vaccine can be made and distributed in the country.
A number of other steps have already been taken to understand the virus.
Health Canada also approved the first test to detect COVID-19 antibodies, aka a serological test, which will give a better understanding of immunity and how many people here at home got the virus.
Trudeau has said that he will take a serological test as soon as it's widely available across the country.
Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, the prime minister's wife, donated plasma for research on the virus.
She tested positive for COVID-19 and recovered from it back in March.