BIOQUÉBEC AND ITS MEMBERS WERE VERY ACTIVE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST COVID WHEN THE PANDEMIC HIT. THIS PAGE PRESENTS THE ESSENTIAL ACTIONS TAKEN IN OUR SECTOR IN 2020.
NOTE THAT THIS PAGE IS NO LONGER UPDATED. FOR RECENT NEWS, VISIT OUR NEWS PAGE.
As the health and safety of our community, of BIOQuébec members, and of industry stakeholders is a top priority, we are following our government officials’ lead regarding public health during this critical time. Please know that BIOQuébec’s team is prepared and available to work remotely and is able to provide uninterrupted service to its members.
This page contains information relevant to Quebec’s life sciences and biotechnology industry in relation to the developing COVID-19 situation. Should you have any questions, comments or additional information that we could share with our industry members, please write to us direction@bioquebec.com
BIOQUÉBEC MEMBERS ARE COMMITTED TO HELPING THE CAUSE
Life sciences companies and organizations are at the center of the fight against COVID-19. They are working extremely hard to develop a safe and effective vaccine while also discovering new treatments and supportive care. They are active in researching, developing, and commercializing new tests, drugs, and other products and services related to life sciences. Research is essential to the defeat of this virus and must continue.
Some BIOQuébec members have chosen to help the cause… Learn a bit more about what they are doing!
COVID-19 screening: saliva tests are ready
September 17, 2020
Laurent Pharmaceuticals Receives Approval from FDA to Initiate its COVID-19 Phase 2 Clinical Trial in the United States
August 27, 2020
IMV Receives Funding From Canadian Governmental Agencies for COVID-19 Vaccine Phase 1 Clinical Study
August 5, 2020
Medicago and GSK agree to develop vaccine against COVID-19
July7, 2020
Quebec grants $ 2.6M to Angany to increase vaccine production capacity in Quebec
September 2, 2020
COVID-19 Clinical Trial Managed by Vantage BioTrials Receives Green-Light from FDA to Proceed in the United States
August 27, 2020
Medicago vaccine begins human clinical trials
July 14, 2020
Génome Québec, in partnership with IRIC, Université de Montréal and Mila announce funding of $1M
June 17, 2020
GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATION
The work we have been doing with government authorities has been yielding good results; our relationship with the Quebec and Canada governments are stronger than ever and has led to positive collaboration in these difficult times. Anie Perrault, BIOQuébec’s Executive Director, is in regular contact with government representatives including Minister Fitzgibbon's office, the chief scientist of Quebec, the office of the secretary general of Quebec, and others.
mai 21, 2020
We invite you to read the letter addressed to the Minister of Finance, which was sent to him on May 8. The latter had announced the tabling of an update to the Quebec budget following the many decisions that had to be made to manage the COVID-19 crisis. It was as part of this announcement that BIOQuébec submitted its recommendations.
Lastly, the expansion of Quebec’s life sciences strategy needs to be reactivated, a continuous and vital dialogue needs to be maintained, and our industry’s recovery and competitiveness on the international stage needs to be stimulated. As a result, we are reiterating the recommendation we made to your colleague, the Minister of Economy and Innovation, in collaboration with our partners in the life sciences sector (letter dated May 8, 2020) to quickly establish a working committee which would be co-chaired by the Minister of Economy and Innovation (MEI) and the Minister of Health and Social Services (MSSS). It would be administered through the Bureau de l’innovation and would welcome stakeholders from the industry’s ecosystem. This committee would allow the government to achieve its various objectives, including securing a safe, stable, and competitive supply of technological innovations and strengthening its biopharmaceutical industry.
BIOQuébec conducted two surveys in the industry to get a picture of the impact of the pandemic on their activities. Thank you to all the companies for taking the time to respond.
Consult the analysis and recommendations report of the 1st survey
MAY 12, 2020
We invite you to read the letter, written in conjunction with BIOTECanada and our colleagues across the country, which was sent to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Navdeep Bains. This missive relates to the support announced by the government under the Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP) through the NRC-IRAP.
It is important to note that during the application process, several applicants learned that a significant change had been made to the original IRAP eligibility criteria, which created confusion regarding the eligibility of certain companies.
It is with that in mind that we composed this letter, in which we requested that the government take immediate action to recognize that start-up biotechnology companies are just as important as other Canadian companies. We also urged the government to implement support measures in alignment with the unique business model of the industry’s companies.
MAY 8, 2020
On April 30, the Minister of Economy and Innovation spoke by telephone with representatives of all life sciences and technology sectors to discuss our economic recovery in the aftermath of COVID-19. Following the call, and to reiterate what had been discussed, we agreed to send Mr. Fitzgibbon a letter signed by all participants .
We hope that the concerns expressed by our sector during this call, especially those relating to financing, employment assistance, clinical trials, and the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB) reform, will allow the government to adjust its actions accordingly. In this letter sent on May 8, we once again declared our full cooperation in putting an end to the COVID-19 crisis as quickly as possible. This crisis has served to highlight how important it is for Quebec to focus on the excellence of its life sciences sector and ensure its competitiveness.
APRIL 30, 2020
The Minister of Economy and Innovation had a conference call with representatives from all life sciences and technology sectors to discuss reopening our economy following COVID-19.
During this call, 4 of our members represented BIOQuébec to reiterate the primary recommendations made over the past year, and more particularly in the last few weeks. Frédéric Leduc (Immune BioSolutions) and Paul Lévesque (Theratechnologies‘ new president) spoke about the biotech industry’s concerns, while Michel Provence (Charles River Laboratories) and Suzie Talbot (Diex Recherche) shared their thoughts on the issues facing CROs.
APRIL 2, 2020
Letter written in partnership with BIOTECanada, and our colleagues across the country, sent to Finance Minister Bill Morneau and his colleague to businesses whose subject is eligibility criteria for federal programs, particularly the wage subsidy (75%).
march 30, 2020
Communication to Minister Fitzgibbon's office in relation to federal government programs allowing for subsidies of up to 75% of salaries. Also sent to our colleagues at BIOTECanada who are involved with the federal government.
march 16, 2020
Letter sent to Minister Fitzgibbon reiterating BIOQuébec's support for the emergency measures implemented by the government recently, the importance of research, and above all, the help we need so that our companies can continue to carry out research and discovery.
BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS
In order to help businesses during these difficult times, several programs have been put in place to offer financial support during the pandemic and to ensure recovery at the end of the latter.
Government financial support programs for businesses
Several assistance programs are currently offered to Québec businesses by the governments of Québec and Canada. This tool will enable you to determine the type of assistance best suited to your situation.
NATIONAL BANK SME GROWTH FUND
Quebec will invest up to $ 100 million to support the growth of small and medium-sized businesses. The Quebec government has announced an investment of up to $ 100 million in the new National Bank SME Growth Fund SEC (National Bank Fund) to support the economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic and to support the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
More support for Canadians through the Safe Restart Agreement
The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today announced a federal investment of more than $19 billion to help provinces and territories safely restart their economies and make our country more resilient to possible future waves of the virus.
MEDIA INTERVENTIONS
Health innovation: invest now to face the crises of tomorrow
June 20, 2020
Advertising in LA PRESSE newspaper
BIOQuébec thanks its members for their contribution in the fight against COVID-19.
May 21, 2020
INTERVIEW
The biotech industry at risk, while it is at the heart of the search for solutions.
April 3, 2020
BIOQUÉBEC MEMBERS ARE COMMITTED TO HELPING THE CAUSE
Life sciences companies and organizations are at the center of the fight against COVID-19. They are working extremely hard to develop a safe and effective vaccine while also discovering new treatments and supportive care. They are active in researching, developing, and commercializing new tests, drugs, and other products and services related to life sciences. Research is essential to the defeat of this virus and must continue.
Some BIOQuébec members have chosen to help the cause… Learn a bit more about what they are doing!
IMPORTANT INDUSTRY INITIATIVES RELATED TO COVID-19
BML TECHNOLOGY, CANADIAN LEADER IN DIGITAL HEALTH, LAUNCHES COVID-19 SQUAD
BML Technology has assembled a squad of professionals within the digital health ecosystem, relying on the dedication of their staff and partners to find a common approach. They offer free question and answer sessions, advice and short interviews on a variety of topics.
WEBSITE: COVID-19 RESOURCES CANADA
Visit the new COVID-19 Resources Canada website now, a page designed to help researchers and clinicians involved in COVID-19 R&D in Canada find human resources, expertise, reagents and equipment on time.
NEW DIRECTORY OF PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE) SUPPLIERS
Montreal InVivo, Medtech Canada’s Quebec office and Plakett Services Cliniques have mobilized to create a directory to help businesses and organizations continue or resume their activities while respecting public health guidelines to protect the health of their employees and of their customers.
WEBINAR - The economy of the life sciences sector : A well APPRECIATED EVENT!
On May 29, BIOQuébec and Montréal International organized a webinar aimed at better understanding the new funding environment in the life sciences. Over 100 people attended and the event was greatly appreciated. Thank you to our 5 Quebec experts, representing 5 funds from here and abroad, for your excellent and very relevant presentations.
OFFERS TO MEMBERS
SAMPLE STORAGE REQUIREMENTS
Brooks Life Sciences/BioSpeciMan offers sample management services to address any major supply chain disruptions and maintain the flow of operations for life sciences companies during the COVID-19 crisis. We are working closely with our carriers to understand the potential risks and their plans to maintain services. To date, we have not experienced any interruptions or delays in sample logistics. All inbound/outbound transportation and sample management activities are maintained. Our warehouse in Montreal is available to all companies involved in COVID-19 projects. Company managers who have needs for storage of kits, materials or other reagents for testing or who need help with the logistics of transporting their samples can contact us.
For any request for information,
please contact Brooks Life Sciences
at 581-984-2616.
FREE ACCESS TO COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH SOFTWARE PLATFORMS
Pillar Science, a Quebec startup, announces that it is now offering its collaborative research software platform free of charge for the duration of the pandemic to all researchers whose research is affected by COVID-19. Today, researchers are primarily using software designed for office automation needs and this means that research work remains in silos rather than being quickly put to use for the entire community. The goal is to allow laboratories working on VID-19, or any laboratory that now has to do 'tele-research', to have access to a platform that will allow them to accelerate their research today so that they can discover tomorrow's innovations more quickly.
For more information, please visit pillar.science/covid-19
LUNCHES FOR COMPANIES AND EMPLOYEES WITHOUT ACCESS TO A CAFETERIA
The LAS OLAS catering service is available to bring lunches directly to employees of life sciences companies who no longer have access to cafeterias. Order a lunch box, a poké bowl, a gourmet box or a hot meal, all served in individual and secure containers. Options available for special diets or allergies. LAS OLAS has adopted extremely strict measures to comply with the crisis period. You will be delivered safely to your business.