TORONTO, ON / September 12, 2023 / Moderna Biopharma Canada Corp. today announced Health Canada has authorized its updated COVID-19 vaccine, SPIKEVAX® XBB.1.5, to prevent COVID-19 in individuals 6 months of age and older. Now approved for use, Moderna’s updated COVID-19 vaccine will be available to provinces and territories to coordinate their fall vaccination campaigns.
“COVID-19 continues to present a serious health risk. With the authorization of our updated vaccine, Canadians have an important tool to help protect themselves, especially as we approach the peak of the respiratory virus season,” said Shehzad Iqbal, Country Medical Director, Moderna Canada. “The National Advisory Commitee on Immunization (NACI) recommends that anyone not vaccinated or without a known COVID infection in the past six months should receive an updated dose, with a focus on safeguarding vulnerable individuals.”
To ensure updated vaccines provide the most robust immune response against the dominant circulatng variants, regulators and global public health agencies recommended that COVID-19 vaccines be updated to a monovalent XBB.1.5 composition. Moderna’s submission to Health Canada contained clinical data showing an immune response against SARS-CoV-2 XBB sublineages including XBB.1.5 and XBB.1.16.