Right before Christmas Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE announced a second agreement with the U.S. government to supply an additional 100 million doses of the companies’ COVID-19 vaccine from production facilities in the U.S.
According to this agreement the total number of doses to be delivered to the U.S. to 200 million. “The companies expect to deliver the full 200 million doses to Operation Warp Speed (OWS) by July 31, 2021. Consistent with the original agreement announced in July 2020, the U.S. government will pay $1.95 billion for the additional 100 million doses,” – BioNTech reported.
Pfizer and BioNTech Supply Second Agreement
The main point of the second agreement is the companies’ obligation to deliver at least 70 million of the additional doses by June 30, 2021, with the remaining 30 million doses to be delivered no later than July 31, 2021. The government also has the option to acquire up to an additional 400 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
“Securing more doses from Pfizer and BioNTech for delivery in the second quarter of 2021 further expands our supply of doses across the Operation Warp Speed portfolio,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “This new federal purchase can give Americans even more confidence that we will have enough supply to vaccinate every American who wants it by June 2021.”
Eligible U.S. residents will continue to receive the vaccine for free, consistent with the U.S. government’s commitment to providing free access for COVID-19 vaccines and according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations for the vaccine’s phased rollout.
“We regard the U.S. government’s order of additional doses from their vaccine contingent as a clear sign of confidence and trust in our vaccine and our ability to deliver. Our goal remains to bring a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine to as many people as we can all around the world,” said Ugur Sahin, M.D., CEO and Co-founder of BioNTech.
Safety Information
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warns about some side effects that can be dangerous for those, who will decide to do a shot:
- Do not administer Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to individuals with known history of a severe allergic reaction (e.g., anaphylaxis) to any component of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
- Appropriate medical treatment used to manage immediate allergic reactions must be immediately available in the event an acute anaphylactic reaction occurs following administration of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
- Immunocompromised persons, including individuals receiving immunosuppressant therapy, may have a diminished immune response to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
- The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine may not protect all vaccine recipients.
- In clinical studies, adverse reactions in participants 16 years of age and older included pain at the injection site (84.1%), fatigue (62.9%), headache (55.1%), muscle pain (38.3%), chills (31.9%), joint pain (23.6%), fever (14.2%), injection site swelling (10.5%), injection site redness (9.5%), nausea (1.1%), malaise (0.5%), and lymphadenopathy (0.3%).
“With these 100 million additional doses, the United States will be able to protect more individuals and hopefully end this devastating pandemic more quickly,” said Albert Bourla, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer. “We look forward to continuing our work with the U.S. government and healthcare providers around the country.”
