anand said pfizer agreed to accelerate the deliveries, and that canada has procured the syringes and other supplies needed to administer the doses.
she said second doses will be delivered depending on how fast the first doses are rolled out.
“this will ensure that canadian children have vaccines when they need them without keeping doses in freezers for extended periods of time when global demand is so high,” said anand.
as of wednesday, 29.6 million canadians over the age of 12 have received at least one dose and 27.9 million of those are fully vaccinated with both required doses.
that amounts to 88.5 per cent of all eligible canadians having at least one dose, and 83 per cent of them being fully vaccinated.
more than 414,000 canadians have now received a third dose, mainly people with compromised immune systems and some residents in long-term care homes, for whom two doses did not give the same level of immunity as they did to most healthy adults.
pfizer spokeswoman christina antoniou said the pediatric doses will come in vials of 10 doses, with a unique label for children and a different coloured cap to ensure it is differentiated from the vials of adult doses.
the adult doses are shipped in vials with six doses in each.