The US government has agreed to pay Pfizer and BioNTech $1.95 billion for 100 million doses of their coronavirus vaccine if it proves “safe and effective” in humans, the companies announced Wednesday.
DRUGS WILL BE DELIVERED TO AMERICANS AT “NO COST”
Under the agreement, the US government “can acquire up to an additional 500 million doses” of the drug jointly developed by the American and German companies after Pfizer manufactures and obtains approval for emergency use authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they said in a joint statement.
The companies are seeking to obtain the emergency use authorization or some form of regulatory approval “as early as October,” if the ongoing trials are successful.
US Health Secretary Alex Azar also confirmed the vaccine agreement between the parties.
“We just signed a contract with global pharmaceutical leader Pfizer to produce 100 million doses of vaccine starting in December of this year with an option to buy a half a billion doses,” Azar said on Fox News. “Now those would of course have to be safe and effective.”