By Peter Loftus
New details are emerging about how much drugmakers are charging
for coronavirus vaccines, with prices spanning from several dollars
a dose to more than $70 for a regimen.
Contracts with the U.S. and other governments that the companies
announced Wednesday price the shots across a wide range, from $10
to $37 a dose. The latest deals follow previous agreements that
cost the U.S. $4 a dose and up.
Johnson & Johnson said it agreed to provide 100 million
doses of its Covid-19 vaccine for use in the U.S., in exchange for
more than $1 billion from the federal government, implying a
per-dose price of about $10. J&J previously received $456
million in U.S. funding to develop its vaccine.
Meanwhile, Moderna Inc. said it signed small-volume supply
contracts with governments at prices ranging from $32 to $37 a
dose, which would mean a two-dose regimen could cost as much as
$74.
Moderna didn't disclose the countries, but Canadian officials
said they signed a Moderna supply agreement.
The contracts suggest drugmakers are making different
calculations on pricing, as they race to develop a successful
coronavirus vaccine. J&J and AstraZeneca PLC have pledged not
to earn a profit during the pandemic, while Moderna and Pfizer Inc.
say they will.
Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE said Tuesday they signed a
contract to supply doses of a Covid-19 vaccine to Canada, but
didn't disclose financial terms.
Under a deal announced last month, the U.S. agreed to pay Pfizer
and BioNTech $1.95 billion for 100 million doses, which suggests a
price of $19.50 a dose and $39 for two doses. AstraZeneca,
meanwhile, agreed to provide 300 million doses to the U.S. for $1.2
billion, implying a cost of $4 a dose. An AstraZeneca spokesman
said the funding also covers development and clinical testing.
The wide range in coronavirus vaccine prices mirrors a large
variance in the costs of other shots. Some approved vaccines cost
more than $200 a dose in the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention. Private health insurers pay $16
to $25 a dose for flu shots.
Drugmakers are still testing their Covid-19 vaccines, which
haven't been cleared for widespread use in the U.S.
Some companies including Pfizer and Moderna say their vaccines
could get emergency approval in the fall if they prove to work
safely in late-stage clinical trials, and have ramped up
manufacturing in advance.
The efforts have won the pharmaceutical industry some breaks
from regular criticism over high drug prices, though some lawmakers
have raised concerns about how much the vaccine developers plan to
charge for their shots. U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D., Ill.) said
last month she was concerned that higher prices could be a barrier
to access to vaccination.
J&J said its new contract with the federal government will
support large-scale domestic manufacturing and delivery of the 100
million doses for use in the U.S. after regulatory approval.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the doses
could be used in clinical trials or distributed as part of a
vaccination campaign if cleared by the Food and Drug
Administration. The U.S. might purchase an additional 200 million
doses under a subsequent agreement, J&J said.
The company is evaluating one- and two dose regimens for its
vaccine. It started the first human study last month, and is
planning a large study to definitively test efficacy and safety
beginning in September.
J&J says it plans to supply more than one billion doses
globally through 2021, if the vaccine is proven to work safely.
Moderna Chief Executive Stephane Bancel said on an earnings call
Tuesday the company has signed supply contracts with various
governments around the world, and as of late July, had received
about $400 million in deposits for those supplies. No U.S. contract
has been announced.
The initial pricing of $32 to $37 in these contracts was below
value, he said, because a coronavirus vaccine could be
cost-effective at $300 and more per course, given its potential to
improve health outcomes and slow transmission of the virus.
Moderna, which has received about $950 million in U.S. funding
for the development and testing of its vaccine, said it is in
discussions with other governments for higher-volume contracts that
would carry lower prices per dose.
The vaccine, which Moderna codesigned with the National
Institutes of Health, has been given in two doses during clinical
trials, which is expected to be the regimen if it is cleared for
wider use.
"We'll be responsible on price," Mr. Bancel said.
Moderna has said it plans to make at least 500 million doses a
year starting in 2021, and possibly as many as a billion.
The company said that when the coronavirus pandemic ends, it
would charge a price for the vaccine more in line with other
innovative vaccines.
Write to Peter Loftus at peter.loftus@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 05, 2020 13:45 ET (17:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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