(p. A8) OTTAWA — Canada on Wednesday become only the second Western country to approve a coronavirus vaccine, a week after Britain did so and a day before U.S. regulators will meet to consider taking that step, opening the possibility that Canadians will start being inoculated next week.
. . .
“It’s a testament to the work of regulators internationally,” said Dr. Supriya Sharma, the chief medical adviser at Health Canada, the regulator. “It’s an exceptional day for Canada.”
The go-ahead means that Canadians could receive the vaccine — which requires two doses, weeks apart — before Americans do, though Pfizer is based in the United States. That is likely to aggravate President Trump, who has demanded faster action by the F.D.A. and was angry that Britain, which began inoculating people on Tuesday, [Dec. 28, 2020] had acted before the United States.
. . .
When asked why her group was able to approve the vaccine ahead of the F.D.A. in the United States, Dr. Sharma said, apparently jokingly, “we’re just better.”
For the full story, see:
(Note: ellipses, and bracketed date, added.)
(Note: the online version of the story was updated Jan. 7, 2021, and has the title “Canada Approves Vaccine and Could Start Shots Next Week.”)