The first COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by a Canadian company will “very likely” not get the green light for emergency use by the World Health Organization (WHO) due to its ties to the tobacco industry.
Dr. Mariângela Simão, WHO’s assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products, spoke about the vaccine during a press briefing Wednesday.
“Due to its connections — it’s owned by tobacco company Philip Morris International — so the process is put on hold because it’s well known that the WHO and UN have a very strict policy regarding engagement with tobacco and arms industries,” she said. “So the process is on hold.
I'll just leave these here:
Let’s break it down by the numbers in the Pfizer report, which out of an initial 42,086 showed an astonishingly high incidence of serious adverse effects.
-There were 1403 instances of “Cardiovascular Adverse Events of Special Interest,”
-These include PTs Acute myocardial infarction; Arrhythmia; Cardiac failure; Cardiac failure acute; Cardiogenic shock; Coronary artery disease; Myocardial infarction; Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome; Stress cardiomyopathy; Tachycardia
-136 instances were fatal, with 380 outcomes unknown.
-3,067 subjects still experienced COVID despite the vaccination.
-136 subjects died with 2110 unknown Outcomes
-449 suffered Facial paralysis, Facial paresis.
-70 suffered Liver related issues, signs and symptoms OR PT Liver injury 5 of them died.
-932 suffered blood related issues with clotting etc. (: Leukopenias NEC (HLT) (Primary Path) OR Neutropenias (HLT) (Primary Path) OR PTs Immune thrombocytopenia, Thrombocytopenia OR SMQ Haemorrhage terms (excl laboratory terms) 34 died 371 had unknown outcomes.
Most frequently reported relevant issues with greater than or equal to 15 occurrences) include: Epistaxis (127), Contusion (112), Vaccination site bruising (96), Vaccination site haemorrhage (51), Petechiae (50), Haemorrhage (42), Haematochezia (34), Thrombocytopenia (33), Vaccination site haematoma (32), Conjunctival haemorrhage and Vaginal haemorrhage (29 each), Haematoma, Haemoptysis and Menorrhagia (27 each), Haematemesis (25), Eye haemorrhage (23), Rectal haemorrhage (22), Immune thrombocytopenia (20), Blood urine present (19), Haematuria, Neutropenia and Purpura (16 each) Diarrhoea haemorrhagic (15).
**
The developer of the would-be vaccine was a Chinese company called CanSino Biologics, hardly a household name in the pharmaceutical industry.
But not only is CanSino a leader in the international race to find a preventive solution to the pandemic — working alonside the Chinese military’s medical-science division — it has surprisingly deep roots in this country. ...
Trudeau announced May 12 that Canada had struck an agreement with the Tianjin-based firm to conduct another phase 1 trial, which essentially measures whether the vaccine is safe and generates an immune response, followed if successful by phase 2 and 3 trials here.
The government refuses to reveal how much it’s spending on the studies, to be overseen by Dalhousie University’s Canadian Centre for Vaccinology. Particulars of the CanSino deal are shielded by “commercial confidentiality,” said Hans Parmar, an Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada spokesman. But Ottawa has committed $1 billion to COVID-19 research generally.
The National Research Council would produce the vaccine for the Canadian market at a manufacturing facility in Montreal if the trials prove successful. It says it should be able to make 70,000 to 100,000 doses a month by the end of the year.
**
A Canadian vaccine researcher says he believes that Chinese political machinations ended a vaccine partnership last summer.
Dr. Scott Halperin, the director of the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology, made the accusation Thursday to the Special Committee on Canada-China Relations.
The partnership was originally planned to be between China’s CanSino Biologics and the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. CanSino had been given a licence by the National Research Council to use a Canadian biological product as part of a COVID-19 vaccine.
China blocked shipments it was supposed to send to Dalhousie researchers by the end of May 2020 to start human trials.
Halperin said he was initially told it was due to bureaucratic issues such as paperwork.
By August, he said, it became clear that the Chinese government had no desire for the vaccine to leave the country.
**
The head of a Calgary-based company in the midst of clinical trials for a COVID-19 vaccine made another pitch for federal funding Monday.
Brad Sorenson, the CEO of Providence Therapeutics, addressed the House of Commons standing committee on international trade. He's made repeated pitches to Ottawa for financial support related to manufacturing, so far without any success.
The company is soon entering its second phase of clinical trials on its messenger RNA-based vaccine.
Sorensen told the committee he needs money to buy materials to scale up production, in anticipation of approval by Health Canada early next year.
**
The first laboratory in Canada that will produce COVID-19 vaccines is opening on Tuesday in Montreal, CTV News confirmed.
However, officials state the facility won't be up and running for "a few months" as it still has to undergo a certification process by Health Canada.
It is expected to start producing vaccines in 2022, according to federal Innovation, Science and Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne's office.
Yep, all in this together.
Also:
A federal program to compensate families of Canadians who suffer death or injury as a result of Covid vaccination is budgeted to run at least five years, says the Department of Health. The final cost of the $75 million program is unknown: “$75 million in funding has been earmarked for the first five years.”
**
Canada is scrapping its pre-arrival COVID-19 testing requirement for fully vaccinated travellers, the federal government announced on Thursday.
Starting April 1, vaccinated travellers won’t need to track down a COVID-19 test in the last day before their vacation ends.
“Today’s announcement is encouraging, but let us remember that all measures are subject to review,” said Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, speaking to reporters Thursday morning.
“We will continue to adjust them as the epidemiological situation here in Canada and abroad evolves.”
The rise of the more-contagious Omicron subvariant in Canada could represent a threat to the elderly and others who are vulnerable, warns a leading expert on BA.2.
(Sidebar: just like the first ones that killed the elderly no one cared about?)
A fresh crisis is needed!
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