Canada to recommend mixing and matching AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines – CBC
NACI guidance based on early research from U.K., Spain that shows mixing shots is safe and effective
Jun 01, 2021
Canada is changing its guidelines on mixing and matching second doses of COVID-19 vaccines and will advise Canadians to combine either the AstraZeneca-Oxford, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna shots interchangeably in certain situations.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) will update its guidance to provinces and territories in the coming days and recommend that a first shot of the AstraZeneca vaccine can be followed by Moderna or Pfizer, according to sources with direct knowledge of the decision who spoke to CBC on condition of anonymity.
For Canadians who have had a first dose of Moderna or Pfizer, NACI will recommend they can now take either of the two shots as a second dose — because they both use a similar mRNA technology.
The updated NACI guidance is based on emerging research from Spain and the United Kingdom that found mixing and matching AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines was both safe and effective at preventing COVID-19.
