Military, health officials doing a practice run of COVID-19 vaccine rollout

The military, health workers and government officials will go through a practice run today of the complex plan to deliver COVID-19 vaccines across the country.

The first vaccine, made by Pfizer-BioNtech, could be approved for use in Canada as early as this week.

And Major-General Dany Fortin, who's leading the military through the vaccine distribution process, says the dry run is intended to get everyone involved comfortable with the intense requirements of handling a vaccine that has to be kept below minus 70 Celcius at all times.

The national operations centre quarterbacking the effort is looking at two phases of a vaccine rollout, starting with about six million doses this winter -- enough to vaccinate three million people with two doses each.

The military could be called upon to fly doses on short order from Europe, the U.S. or elsewhere, and to help get them to remote, northern and coastal communities.

But the military remains as much in the dark as everyone else about the specific timing for the doses to start arriving.