Pfizer increases the price of the Covid-19 vaccine by 25% in Europe

Pfizer is raising the price of its covid-19 vaccine in Europe by more than 25% under a new contract negotiated with the European Union, according to a report by the Financial Time. Competitor Moderna is also increasing the price of its vaccine in Europe by around 10%.

Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine is already expected to generate the most revenue of any drug in a single year – around $ 33.5 billion in 2021 alone, according to the pharmaceutical company. own estimates. But the company says it is providing the vaccine to poorer countries at a significantly reduced price.

Pfizer previously billed the European Union € 15.50 per dose for its vaccine ($ 18.40), which is based on new mRNA technology. The company will now charge € 19.50 ($ 23.15) for 2.1 billion doses that will be delivered through 2023, according to the Financial Time.

Moderna previously charged the EU $ 22.60 per dose, but will now get $ 25.50 per dose. This new price is in fact lower than what was initially expected, according to the Financial Time, as the EU adjusted its original order to get more doses.

It is not yet clear whether the next round of potential negotiations between the United States and Pfizer will see the company raise its prices. Pfizer and Moderna did not respond to requests for comment early Monday morning.

While most pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer and Moderna sell their covid-19 vaccines at a profit, even the Chinese vaccine Sinovac is sold at make money– the British vaccine AstraZeneca is sold at cost price. But AstraZeneca suffered bad press after a a few dozen people around the world have died from blood clots believed to be linked to the British vaccine. It turns out that Pfizer’s risk of a blood clot is “similar” to that of AstraZeneca, according to one new study and your risk of dying from covid-19 is much higher than dying from any vaccine.

Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are provided free to EU residents by the government, just as vaccines are free to everyone in the US, but governments around the world continue to pay big bucks for the privilege of bring the pandemic under control.

Oddly enough, it seems the folks at Moderna have a reputation for being assholes, perhaps due to their inexperience. The company was founded in 2010 and its covid-19 vaccine is its first commercial product.

From Financial Time:

An official said staff working for Moderna were particularly “absurd and arrogant” in their dealings with the commission, pointing to a lack of previous experience in government affairs.

Pfizer, on the other hand, has circled the block a few times and told investors things were going extremely well for the company during an earnings call last week. And the covid-19 vaccine is a big part of that financial success.

“The Pfizer-BioNTech covid-19 vaccine contributed $ 7.8 billion in global revenue in the second quarter, and we continue to sign agreements with governments around the world,” said Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer. Last week.

But Bourla was careful to note that Pfizer is providing the vaccine at discounted rates to poorer countries.

“We anticipate that a significant amount of our remaining 2021 vaccine manufacturing capacity will be delivered to middle and low income countries where our prices are in line with income levels or a non-profit price,” Bourla said.

“In fact, we are on track to deliver on our commitment to deliver over 1 billion doses this year, or roughly 40% of our total production, to middle- and low-income countries, and another billion in 2022.” , said Boula. continued.

Only the rich countries will have to pay through the nose.