Federal officials announced the approval on Tuesday morning, more than two months after Moderna submitted its new formulation. The mRNA-based shot is monovalent, targeting just the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant, which means the vaccine is more tailored to the virus strains currently circulating.

The company told CBC News that its first newly approved doses should arrive in Canada “by tomorrow” and will continue to arrive over the course of the month, while Canadian officials expect deliveries to the provinces will start in October.

“I know we all wish Covid-19 no longer existed, but people are still getting infected, and vaccination continues to be one of the most effective ways to protect ourselves against serious outcomes,” said Dr. Supriya Sharma, chief medical advisor at Health Canada, during a technical briefing.

Health Canada said Canadians age five and up should receive one dose, regardless of their Covid-19 vaccination history. Meanwhile children from six months to four years old should receive two doses if they have not been previously vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine, or one dose if they’ve previously had at least one dose.

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