Health Committee on Feb. 5th, 2021

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

I understand that. Yes, I believe the reason relates to their production facility, but that is something that I'm still working on ascertaining the precise details about.

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

It matters given that we were talking about predictability earlier. Under Quebec's plan, those in senior citizens' homes were supposed to have been vaccinated by now, but that's not the case. Every day vaccine deliveries are delayed puts people at risk. The delays impact public health policies and non-COVID-19 patients because it's crucial not to overburden hospitals. We should at least know why.

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

The bottom of these reasons is that we received 180,000 Moderna doses this week and we will continue to receive Moderna doses over the course of the quarter.

My own father is 90 years old. I understand the urgency, and I am working every single day to make sure that we get doses into this country as we're entitled to under contract so that long-term care—so that Canadians—can have vaccinations as soon as possible. That is the clarity that I wanted to provide to you today.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Thériault.

We go now to Mr. Davies.

Mr. Davies, you have two and a half minutes, please.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Minister Anand, we heard Minister Hajdu say that transparency is very important to your government, and you mentioned that the EU asked AstraZeneca if they could disclose part of the contract [Technical difficulty—Editor].

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

I'm sorry. You've gone on mute. Please ask your question one more time. We'll continue the clock once your question is asked.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Ms. Anand, we heard Ms. Hajdu say that transparency was fundamental to your government's approach, and you mentioned that the EU asked AstraZeneca if they would agree to disclose part of their contract, which they did, however redacted.

To honour transparency, will you ask AstraZeneca if they will allow you to release part of the contract to the Canadian public?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

Indeed, this is an issue that I have already raised with the vaccine suppliers—the contents of the contract, what is permitted to be disclosed, what is not permitted to be disclosed. I believe in transparency and accountability. I also believe in respecting contracts, so I am working to try to find whether there is a solution here. Currently I'm obliged to observe those confidentiality provisions. I will say that the AstraZeneca contract was heavily redacted and that's an important point—

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

I have very limited time, Minister. Will you disclose the confidentiality clauses themselves?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

That's a very good question, and I will take that back to determine whether that would be possible within the confines of the legal parameters of the agreements.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Thank you, Minister.

Minister, Deputy Prime Minister Freeland has claimed that drawing vaccine doses from COVAX was always part of the federal government's procurement strategy. However, Gavi, which is the organization leading procurement and delivery for COVAX, has noted that for self-financing countries like Canada, “the Facility serves as a critical insurance policy that will significantly increase their chances of securing vaccines,...if their own bilateral deals fail”.

Is the Government of Canada's decision to draw from the COVAX program an admission that our bilateral deals have failed?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Oakville, ON]

It is not at all, not in the least. We wanted to make sure that we were supporting developing countries, and at the same time, the way in which the COVAX facility worked was that it had two pillars, the advance market commitment for low-income countries and the facility for self-financing countries. We invested $220 million in both pillars. We just accepted the AstraZeneca doses that were dedicated to Canada according to equitable allocation mechanisms. In fact, other developed countries like New Zealand are also accepting doses as well.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

So, help me to understand—oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Thank you, Mr. Davies.

We'll start our round three now. We'll start with Mr. Barlow.

Please go ahead for five minutes.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Thanks, Mr. Chair.

Does the minister expect restrictions to be lifted once we hit herd immunity?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

“Restrictions” is a general term. There are a number of public health measures in place that are imposed by municipalities, provinces and indeed the federal government. Certainly as we see a decrease in COVID-19 circulating, I would anticipate that measures will be alleviated.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

When do you expect, then, Minister, that Canadians will be back to normal life, if it's contingent on whether or not the government is able to get enough vaccines—as you've promised—by September?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

I'm reluctant at this point to predict what a normal life will be all about or when that might happen. I think what we know is that provinces and territories have been steadily increasing their capacity to test, to contact trace and to do the isolation. They've learned a lot about infection control and prevention. We've invested millions if not billions of dollars into a variety of different supports, including those for long-term care homes, and we're continuing to purchase and procure vaccines for Canadians. So I think—

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Thank you, Minister. You've said that you will have enough vaccines, that every Canadian who wants a vaccination will be vaccinated in September. With that promise on the table, do you expect that businesses will be back to being open, travel restrictions will be lifted, schools will open and those types of things? Will life be back to what Canadians expect if you reach your promise of vaccinations by September? Will I be able to play hockey next September?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Certainly the more Canadians are vaccinated, the safer Canadians will be, and I would anticipate—and I certainly would turn to Dr. Tam and others—that the resumption of what we call normal life would begin.

I think the question of international travel is an interesting one, though, and it drives attention to the importance of contributing to COVAX, because of course we know that many other countries will not have access to vaccination for years, and that will affect—

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Thanks, Minister. I wasn't asking about international travel. I was asking about Canadians' lives going back to normal. Minister, I think this is a question you should be able to answer with yes or no. Canadians want to know this information, and all of you have talked about today about being open and transparent. Will Canadians' lives be back to normal once we reach herd immunity, yes or no?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Well, I think there's a lot packed into that question. Certainly, that's the goal of vaccinating as broadly as possible, and certainly with an aggressive goal of the end of September for any Canadian who wishes to be vaccinated, I think we'll see a great return to normal. It's difficult to predict, of course, because the virus always has a surprise for us, so I will just say that that is indeed the goal of vaccination: that we can resume a “normal life” to the degree that it is possible within Canada. I think the issue of international travel is one that's under close examination by—

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Again, Minister, I'm not asking you about international travel. I appreciate that—

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

I would just say that many Canadians are looking forward to taking a vacation—clearly.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

I'm sure they are.

Would you expect, Minister, that lockdowns would be eased before September—if we have access to the vaccines—once a significant portion of Canadians have been vaccinated?