Hi Everyone,

We have blasted through the 500 signature mark, and I will now be contacting my local MLA, Will Greaves (Liberal), as well as Saanich/Gulf Islands MLA Elizabeth May (Green). I've connected with some patient groups on Facebook about this, and put up a few posters with the QR code for this petition locally, including at hospital sites and community boards. My hope is that if we all do what we can to share this petition with our communities, we can make it go the good kind of "viral," and secure our access. 

In the course of my research into what happened with regard to Canada's Novavax access, I found some information on BIOTECanada. See below:

No vaccine was ever produced in the Montreal facility that was supposed to produce Novavax for Canada, and it looks like the government and Novavax were not able to come to an agreement on a way forward. (https://www.biotech.ca/news/three-years-and-waiting-for-canadas-made-in-montreal-covid-shot/

After paying several million a year to keep the doors of the facility open, and afer investing 588 million for future doses, Canada opted out of the contract, and received only 28 million of the 588, returned. (https://www.montrealgazette.com/news/article806974.html

"A contract to make COVID-19 vaccines for US-based Novavax appears to be dead in the water, and no other clients have yet come on board." (https://www.biotech.ca/news/building-a-global-biotechnology-powerhouse-in-canada/

This is definitely concerning, and I believe it means we will have to level up our efforts. Will you join me in reaching out to your local and provincial health authorities, to build pressure on our decision makers to do the right thing, and provide access to the Novavax, even if that means we must purchase it from other countries, such as India, as we did before?  

Please feel free to reach out and connect if you have any questions, ideas or concerns. And please continue to share the petition!  

Thanks you so much everyone!