How, when and what vaccine will reach the citizens for the Covid-19 is a mystery. Dosage prices are also unknown, although some of them are already being announced. Moderna yesterday placed between 27 and 31 euros its fork, which can be cheaper the larger the order. However, Pfizer has already announced that its product will be cheaper and especially the British laboratory AstraZeneca has put enormous pressure on the competition, after assuring a few days ago that its vaccine would cost only "a few dollars".
However, the vaccine that different countries buy will depend on a combination of factors and not only on price. The initiative that arrives first will have an advantage over those that appear later (it is expected that the first doses can be delivered in the fall), although the laboratory's production capacity (billions of doses are required), effectiveness and capacity will also be crucial. from each country to negotiate.
At the moment, Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZeneca are the laboratories that have taken the lead in the rest of the initiatives, since the three companies have phase III vaccines, the last stage before their approval, in which efficacy is tested in thousands of volunteers. Another of the giants in the sector, Janssen (from the Johnson & Johnson group), is just one step behind. This is highlighted in the list of the World Health Organization (WHO), as of July 31, which includes all the research on vaccines against this pandemic. That document indicates that there are already 26 developments in the human testing phase (which also includes the initiatives of Chinese companies and others) worldwide and another 139 in previous stages in the laboratory. It is a titanic effort, since R&D can usually take a decade and in this case the aim is to shorten the period to between 12 and 18 months, or even less.
In the case of the product from Pfizer and its partner Biontech it will have a price of 16.5 euros. The U.S. government will spend about $ 1.95 billion for this vaccine, according to Evaluate Pharma. This firm also estimates that those of Janssen and that of the association of GSK and Sanofi will cost around $ 10.
"We are committed to making the potential vaccine available to as many non-profit countries as possible during the pandemic period, to support broad and equitable access worldwide," justifies Luis Cordero, director of access to the AstraZeneca market , regarding the low price expected for its R&D vaccine together with the University of Oxford.
The specialized consultant Evaluate Pharma placed the known price of Moderna's vaccine yesterday in what it baptized as "a luxury range" and anticipated the controversy over that amount taking into account that various US public initiatives have subsidized almost 1,000 million dollars the laboratory research efforts. Those responsible for the company, however, insisted that the price could be lower if the orders are large.
"We are working with governments around the world and with others to ensure that the vaccine is accessible regardless of the ability to pay," Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said yesterday at a conference with investors . The company also announced that it is in talks with several countries for supply agreements, adding that it has already received around 400 million in deposits for an eventual supply.
Moderna is precisely the pharmaceutical company that reached an agreement with Rovi Laboratories whereby the listed Madrid company would be responsible for filling and packaging millions of doses of this vaccine. An industrial task that the Ministry of Health wants to take as an advantage when it comes to supplying Spain, but the negotiation channel, which in principle falls to the European Commission, is still not clear.
More remdesivir manufacturers?
Prosecutors. A group of attorneys general from different US states, both Democrat and Republican, yesterday urged the Government of Donald Trump to allow other companies to manufacture the remdesivir treatment against Covid-19 to increase its availability and reduce the price of the drug. antiviral, produced by Gilead.
Price . The coalition of more than 30 prosecutors said in a letter that Gilead "has not set a reasonable price" to rebuff. "Gilead should not benefit from the pandemic and should be pressured to do more to help more people," the text notes. The manufacturer is charging most US patients $ 3,120 for a complete treatment. Gilead responded in a statement that the proposed regulatory actions are not authorized.