Moderna looks to price COVID-19 vaccine at $50-$60 per course

COVID-19 vaccine frontrunner Moderna is allegedly looking to price its candidate at around $50-$60 per course, according to a report from the Financial Times.

Moderna’s shot would cost between $24 and $30 a dose, which totals to around $50-$60 per course as the vaccine is delivered as part of a two-dose regimen. According to the report, Moderna’s proposed pricing would apply to the US and other high-income countries.

In contrast, a vaccine candidate from Pfizer/BioNTech has been priced at $19.50 per shot –  $39 per course – following a $1.95bn supply deal inked with the US government earlier this month. Analysts had forecasted that this deal would likely pressure other companies developing vaccines for the novel coronavirus to set a similar price.

Moderna, as well as Pfizer and Merck & Co, plan to sell their respective vaccine candidates at a profit, although some drugmakers are either pricing their candidates at a low cost or are not seeking any profit at all for their candidates.

Last week, US president Donald Trump signed four executive orders targeting drug prices, including new legislation allowing states, wholesalers and pharmacies to import FDA-approved medicines from foreign countries and sell them in the US.

Pharma industry executives have already criticised the orders, including Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) president and CEO, Stephen Ubl, who said: “The research-based biopharmaceutical industry has been working around the clock to develop therapeutics and vaccines to treat and prevent COVID-19. The administration’s proposal today is a reckless distraction that impedes our ability to respond to the current pandemic – and those we could face in the future.”

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla also criticised the Trump administrations decisions, saying that the company will now rethink its existing plans to invest in US research and development and manufacturing.

“Overall, I’m disappointed by these executive orders. They pose enormous distraction at a time where the industry needs to be completely focused on developing a potential COVID-19 vaccine or treatment,” said Bourla.

“We have plans to invest in both R&D and manufacturing in the United States. If finalised, these new executive orders could force us to rethink those plans, consider job reductions and add to the economic and health anxiety already widely felt in our country,” he added.