HEALTH Canada on Tuesday authorized the use of the Moderna SPIKEVAX COVID-19 vaccine targeting the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant for people six months of age and older.

Health Canada received Moderna’s submission for its new COVID-19 vaccine on June 29. After a thorough, independent review of the evidence, Health Canada said it has determined that the vaccine meets the department’s stringent safety, efficacy and quality requirements.

According to the product label, individuals five years of age and older should receive one dose, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination history. Children between six months and four years of age should receive two doses if they have not been previously vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine, or one dose if they have been previously vaccinated with one or more doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Health Canada is also actively reviewing submissions from Pfizer-BioNTech seeking authorization of their COVID-19 vaccine targeting the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant for people six months of age and older.

In addition, Health Canada has received a submission from Novavax for their COVID-19 vaccine targeting the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant for people 12 years and older. These submissions are being reviewed on a priority basis by dedicated scientific teams.

Health Canada said that vaccination continues to be one of the most effective ways to protect ourselves against COVID-19. Evidence indicates that all of the vaccines used in Canada are very effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19. Since vaccine protection decreases over time, if it has been six months since your last dose, vaccination with the new formulation of COVID-19 vaccine is recommended to provide better protection against variants of concern.