Question Period Note: MOBILIZING INDUSTRY TO FIGHT COVID-19

How has the Government of Canada mobilized Canadian industry in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic?

• Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government of Canada has worked to ensure that Canadians have access to the resources needed.

• The government worked with companies and industries to supply personal protective equipment and medical devices. More than 6,500 individuals and businesses offered to help, and many pivoted to producing personal protective equipment items needed by frontline healthcare workers and the general public.

• There is now significant domestic personal protective equipment supply and a National Emergency Strategic Stockpile of medical items to meet the emergency needs of provinces and territories.

• Over the course of its industry call to action, the government deployed all resources at its disposal to quickly establish reliable domestic supply chains, including through significant federal contracts, innovation programming, and business supports.

• While the government returned to competitive procurement processes in late 2020, industry programming has been leveraged to support the development of next-generation healthcare commodities that can put Canada at the forefront of future healthcare needs.

• The government will continue to support Canadians in ensuring they have access to the resources they need to safely navigate the pandemic.

A call was issued to Canadian businesses in March 2020. A plan to mobilize and support Canada’s domestic manufacturing capacity to supply vital made-in-Canada protective gear and other medical equipment and devices needed to respond to COVID-19 was also created. Each of the more than 6,500 businesses and individuals that responded to the call was assessed on how it could support the urgent needs of Canadians and frontline healthcare workers. Canada’s Global Innovation Clusters also tapped into their networks to help develop and manufacture face shields, masks, and testing kits.

The government deployed industry and innovation programming and invested over $79 million in personal protective equipment (PPE) innovation projects across multiple programs.

Canada established domestic manufacturing capacity for several critical PPE products to help meet the increased needs of the public healthcare sector, with existing and additional capacity available in the general market, to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The National Emergency Strategic Stockpile has an 8-week stockpile of several PPE categories of products including, N95 respirators, surgical masks, gloves, face shields, and disposable gowns.

Under Canada’s procurement agreements with domestic industrial suppliers of medical equipment to secure further PPE for healthcare workers, there are a number of notable success stories:

• In August 2020, Medicom opened its manufacturing facility in Montreal and began the production and delivery of domestically-produced surgical masks and, subsequently, respirators.

• In April 2021, General Motors delivered their 10 millionth mask to the Government of Canada, going on to donate still more to local organizations across Canada.

• In April 2021, the new 3M factory in Brockville, Ontario, began the production and delivery of N95 respirators.

• Many ventilators were developed and produced from scratch, providing Canada with secure access to a highly complex medical device that was in short supply.

• Through competitive procurement in 2021, the government continued to support domestic manufacturers of surgical masks and medical gowns.