Moderna with a second dose to speed up vaccination | COVID-19 | news | the sun

TheThe Ministry of Health announced, on Tuesday, that a person who received a first dose of the Pfizer vaccine can receive a second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

The ministry notes that “this decision is based on the opinion of public health experts and on the recommendations of the Commission on Immunization of Quebec (CIQ).”

The province of Quebec will receive significant shipments of the Moderna vaccine in the coming days. Delivery from the United States in particular will allow for 2.6 million doses to be obtained during the weeks of June 28 and July 5.

Starting tomorrow, it will be possible to go to a clinic without an appointment and receive the Moderna vaccine, regardless of the vaccine used for the first dose.

Modifications are also underway on the ClicSanté platform to allow for a vaccine change. Residents will be notified when this functionality becomes available.

The decision was made against the background that the quantities of Pfizer’s vaccines to be delivered to Canada will be “lower” in the coming weeks.

Remember that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are both mRNA vaccines.

“So they have the same performance and composition. In a recent opinion, the CIQ indicates that the profiles of the two vaccines are very similar and that it is very likely that the long-term protective effect would be good in a mixed schedule, that is, in a scenario that would use a dose of each vaccine,” says the Ministry of Health. .

CIQ states that for the second dose, if the mRNA vaccine used in the first shot is not readily available, a person may be given a different mRNA vaccine.

The mRNA vaccines will then be considered interchangeable and the two doses received will be considered valid.

An eight-week interval between two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine is still recommended. Remember that two doses of the vaccine are necessary to ensure better efficacy and long-term protection.