AstraZeneca

Saturday May 22, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 22, 2021

Ontario to provide 2nd dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine after temporary suspension

Ontario’s top doctor says the province will now allow second doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to be administered.

May 20, 2021

Dr. David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, said the second dose administration will begin with those who received their first dose between March 10 and 19.

“Nothing is more important than the health of Ontarians, and for the best protection against COVID-19 it is vital that everyone who received the AstraZeneca vaccine for their first dose receives a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine,” said Williams.

Shots will begin to the week of May 24, with informed consent. Williams said those who are eligible should contact the provider who administered their first dose to book their appointment.

The announcement immediately applies to those who received their first dose during Ontario’s initial pharmacy rollout at locations in Toronto, Windsor and Kingston.

Williams was joined at Friday’s update by Dr. Dirk Huyer, the co-ordinator of the provincial outbreak response.

For those who received their first dose after March 19, they will be able to get their second shot within the recommended interval of 12 weeks. Williams said more info will be made available soon.

March 25, 2021

“The province is working with primary care providers and pharmacies to ensure second dose appointments are scheduled in advance of the 12-week interval,” Williams said.

Several provinces have stopped giving the shot because of concerns about rare, fatal blood clots. However, Williams said the health risks posed by the vaccine are low.

He said new data indicated the benefits far outweigh the risk with second doses.

“Data from the UK strongly suggests a much-reduced risk of VITT in second doses of AstraZeneca — one in 600,000,” a release said Friday.

Ontario had paused the use of the vaccine but still had tens of thousands of doses in storage. Huyer said there are 55,000 doses set to expire by May 31.

Nearly one million Ontario residents got the AstraZeneca vaccine as their first shot between March 10 and May 11.

Health authorities were trying to decide whether to resume using the AstraZeneca shot or if a different vaccine should be substituted for second doses.

Ontario said it is still waiting on a recommendation on mixing doses from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI).

More than 7.5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ontario, with formulations from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca. (Global News) 

 

Wednesday May 12, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday May 12, 2021

What happens when people get two different COVID-19 vaccines?

As some experts continue to warn of very rare side effects associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine, Canadian health officials are now reviewing the research on mixing various COVID-19 shots.

May 6, 2020

A study of a “mismatched” vaccine regimen is underway in the U.K. — but some scientists say there’s reason to believe that administering two doses of different products could boost a person’s immune response beyond what can be achieved by giving the same shot twice.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) caused some confusion earlier this month when it said the viral vector shot from AstraZeneca is not the “preferred” product given its associated risk of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) — a condition that causes blood clots. That warning came out after hundreds of thousands of Canadians had received the AstraZeneca vaccine already.

According to the Ontario Science Table, estimates of the frequency of VITT in individuals who have received the AstraZeneca vaccine now range from 1 case in 26,000 to 1 case in 127,000 doses administered.

The risk of developing this side effect, combined with an uncertain delivery schedule for future supply, has prompted some provinces to consider pausing AstraZeneca vaccinations altogether.

Researchers at Oxford University in the U.K. launched a study in early February to explore the possible benefits of alternating different COVID-19 vaccines. According to the lead scientists, the study is “looking for clues as to how to increase the breadth of protection against new virus strains.”

March 31, 2021

The study — otherwise known as the COVID-19 Heterologous Prime Boost study, or “Com-COV” — is collecting data to determine whether receiving two different types of vaccine generates an immune response at least equal to the response that follows receiving the same product twice. (A “heterologous” vaccination regimen is one that uses more than one product.)

Dr. Helen Fletcher is a professor of immunology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in the U.K. She said a “mismatched” vaccine program would deliver some practical benefits — vaccine delivery logistics would be greatly simplified — but there could be another good reason to pursue a mixed-dose regimen.

“I’m excited about the study because I think it’s likely that the immune response will be even better if you mix and match vaccines,” Fletcher said in an interview with CBC News.

Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said last week the current guidance is for AstraZeneca recipients to get a second dose of the same product, but NACI is now reviewing the Oxford research on mixing AstraZeneca with an mRNA shot.

“There will be further advice forthcoming on that second dose based on the evolving science. We should watch this space,” Tam said. 

Will Canada shorten the time between shots? Possibly. NACI said in early March that, given the limited vaccine supply, provinces and territories may want to wait up to 16 weeks between first and second doses to give more people at least some level of protection.

The provinces have since followed this guidance, with a few exceptions. For example, many long-term care home residents have been fully vaccinated on the timeline recommended by the vaccine makers. Pfizer calls for a second dose 21 days after the first, while Moderna stipulates the second shot should come 28 days later. (CBC) 

 

 

Saturday March 20, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday March 20, 2021

Biden Takes First Jab At Vaccine Diplomacy, Sharing Doses With Mexico, Canada

Under pressure to share AstraZeneca vaccine doses not yet being used to inoculate Americans, the Biden administration is finalizing plans to loan millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to Mexico and Canada. It’s a first foray into vaccine diplomacy for the Biden administration, weeks after global competitors China and Russia began using vaccine doses to exert influence.

March 13, 2021

The U.S. government has contracts to buy hundreds of millions more vaccine dosesthan there are people living here, but with most of those doses not yet delivered and Americans still struggling to get vaccination appointments, the Biden administration has so far focused on making sure Americans get vaccinated first. 

While AstraZeneca’s vaccine has been approved for use in many other countries, including Mexico and Canada, it still hasn’t been given emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. So, the White House announced it is working through the technicalities to loan 2.5 million doses to Mexico and 1.5 million doses to Canada from its stockpile of 7 million doses. 

“This action will allow our neighbors to meet a critical vaccination need in their countries, providing more protection immediately across the North American continent,” said Jeff Zients, White House coronavirus coordinator.

February 9, 2017

While the United States has vaccinated more than 12% of its population according to Johns Hopkins data, Canada has vaccinated only 1.7% of its population and Mexico only 0.5%.

Zients said the loans will be repaid through dose deliveries from AstraZeneca later in the year. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said many countries have asked to borrow from the stockpile, but said it’s not yet clear whether other requests may be granted.

After briefly pausing vaccinations with AstraZeneca in Europe due to concerns about blood clots developing, health officials there this week announced they believe the vaccine to be safe and effective and resumed administering the vaccine. (NPR) 

 

Tuesday March 2, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday March 2, 2021

Partisan chess games in times of the pandemic

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he doesn’t want a pandemic election. Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole has shown signs he wants any election call to be later rather than sooner. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has said he will not help to topple the government until the vast majority of Canadians are immunized against COVID-19.

October 8, 2020

So why are there more signs nearly every day that we are heading for the polls late this spring or at latest next fall? 

The short answer is because we cannot believe any of the main party leaders. They all know Canadians, by and large, are too preoccupied with the pandemic to be distracted by an election campaign. They know, too, that a campaign and national vote during the pandemic is bound to carry more risks than in normal times. None of them wants to wear that, so they are all saying the right thing.

But they are politicians, after all. They have watched while voters went to the polls in New Brunswick on Sept. 14 and rewarded Premier Blaine Higgs for rolling the dice. B.C. Premier John Horgan did the same and it paid off on Oct. 24 when he was soundly re-elected. Saskatchewan’s Scott Moe did it and voters ultimately rewarded his Saskatchewan Party with a fourth majority mandate. So it turns out there may well be partisan benefits for political leaders who gamble on pandemic elections. 

September 1, 2020

Not always, though. Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey called an election for Feb. 13, but COVID-19 had other plans. After variants caused several outbreaks, in-person voting was cancelled and the election was delayed for more than half the province. The results are still unknown. 

The Newfoundland and Labrador election mess should serve as a reminder to federal party leaders that if the country goes into a COVID crisis during the campaign, their partisan gamesmanship could turn into a political nightmare. In that respect, only the NDP’s Singh as actually saying the right thing: No election until Canada has achieved herd immunity.

It would be a pleasant change if both Trudeau and O’Toole came out publicly sharing Singh’s position. They could then legitimately say they were putting the interests and welfare of Canadians ahead of partisanship. It would also be nice if COVID-19 mysteriously disappeared around the world. The two things are about equally likely.

January 22, 2021

But if they know that an election is riskier than usual — consider what would happen to the leader who forced an election if a Newfoundland and Labrador scenario unfolded nationally — what are the two leaders and their inner circles thinking?

O’Toole and his brain trust are probably not in a hurry, but they will play an election and play it hard if it happens. Their fundraising has been strong so their war chest will be full. They know Trudeau’s brand has been battered somewhat by the slower than promised acquisition of COVID vaccines. What they also know but would be unwilling to acknowledge is that O’Toole is struggling to establish a leadership brand Canadians find appealing, especially in Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes and to a lesser extent in B.C. And they are stuck at about 30 per cent support in opinion polls, which is the same as when Andrew Scheer led the party.

December 5, 2020

As for Trudeau, he has seen his popularity slide, but he also sees support for his party remaining strong, especially in central and eastern Canada, which means they would win an election if it was held today. But could they eke out a majority? And if they don’t, why force an election at all? 

History has shown that minority governments can work. Trudeau and O’Toole might want to consider that as they play high-stakes partisan chess. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial)