The Canadian Ministry of Health has approved the use of a modified vaccine from Novavax to prevent the coronavirus (COVID-19) in people aged 12 and older.

This vaccine uses a traditional approach to defend the body against the coronavirus.

It contains a version of the viral spike protein, and it is also authorized as a booster for those aged 18 and over, according to the Canadian Ministry of Health's webpage.

Novavax also stated that it expects doses to be available across the country.

The first Novavax vaccine to protect against coronavirus (COVID-19), known as Nuvaxovid, was licensed for use on Canadians aged 18 and over by the Canadian Ministry of Health in February 2022.

The mRNA vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna were also updated to target XBB.1.5 and approved for use in Canada, including children under 12 years old.

In the same context, Canadian doctors are preparing for what could be another busy season for colds and flu, as cases of RSV and flu rise while the coronavirus continues to spread.

This announcement comes as the federal government reported more than 8,000 detections of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in laboratory tests across the country - including hospitalized individuals - with a positivity rate of 19 percent. This is a slight national increase for the week ending November 25.

The flu season has also officially begun across Canada with levels of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) within expected levels for this time of year.

It is not too late to get vaccinated against the flu, regional health officials say, encouraging people to protect themselves from many respiratory viruses that may peak during the holiday season.