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July 23, 2020
Health Law Daily

Trump Administration Announces Almost $2 Billion Contract With Pfizer And German Biotech Company For 100 Million Doses Of Coronavirus Vaccine By December

  • July 23, 2020

The New York Times (7/22, Weiland, Grady, Sanger) reports the Trump Administration announced an almost $2 billion contract with Pfizer and German biotech company BioNTech for 100 million doses of a coronavirus vaccine by December. Under Operation Warp Speed, the Trump Administration aims “to drastically shorten the time it would take to manufacture and distribute a working vaccine” with such contracts to secure “coronavirus vaccines even before they are ready.”
      The Washington Post (7/22, Denham) reports under the contract, the companies “will supply the federal government with 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccine under a $1.95 billion deal,” which is the “largest investment yet in a vaccine that has not been proven effective.” The Trump Administration has previously signed “contracts with AstraZeneca for 300 million doses, and Novavax for at least 100 million doses.”
      CNN (7/22, Thomas) reports HHS Secretary Alex Azar said, “For any vaccine that we have bought – so for instance, the Pfizer vaccine – those hundred million doses would actually be acquired by the US government, then given for free to Americans.” Azar said, “We will ensure that any vaccine that we’re involved in sponsoring is either free to the American people or is affordable.”
      Other sources covering the story include: the AP (7/22, Superville), The Hill (7/22, Moreno), Reuters (7/22, Erman, Banerjee), and the Wall Street Journal (7/22, A1, Hopkins, Wack, Subscription Publication).