Ottawa Announces $574 Million in Funding for Pandemic Preparedness, Vaccine Development

Ottawa is earmarking $574 million in funding for 19 research projects to help Canada be prepared for future health emergencies, with a focus on vaccine development, government officials say. The money will be used to fund projects at 14 research institutions across the country, said Soraya Martinez Ferrada, the minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada. Included in the funded projects is the construction of a new bio-manufacturing centre at Ottawa Hospital that will develop and manufacture vaccines, gene therapies, and cell therapies. “The projects that we’re supporting today will strengthen our ability to supply medicines, vaccines and therapeutics for the benefit of Canadians,” Ms. Martinez Ferrada said in a May 6 press release. “These collaborations between research hubs, postsecondary institutions and research hospitals will foster innovation across the country.”...