Interesting funding news from Canada (from The Logic daily roundup)
Speaking of a vaccine: Trudeau also announced another $1.1 billion for medical programs and research to address COVID-19. It includes $115 million for development work on vaccines and treatments; $662 million for research on how the virus affects brain and airway cells, as well as for clinical trials for treatments; and $350 million for national testing, modelling, data-monitoring and tracking of COVID-19 in Canada. Some of the money will go to existing scientific programs and facilities, including Genome Canada ($40 million) and the National Research Council of Canada ($29 million). The Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization – International Vaccine Centre in Saskatchewan will receive $23 million from Western Economic Diversification Canada, adding to a same-sized cash injection announced last month.
Ottawa is putting the largest batch of the cash—$600 million—into the Strategic Innovation Fund over two years for testing projects and domestic biomedical manufacturing expansion.
“Our priority is securing access to these potential therapies and vaccines for Canadians, as soon as they become available,” Véronique Simard, press secretary to Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains. The funding will be open to “any firm that chooses to conduct this research and manufacturing activity in Canada,” including the local subsidiaries of foreign pharmaceutical firms.
