Moderna Says US Authorities Forced to Give Up 60% of Produced Vaccines US

Moderna has been forced to hand over 60% of its CORONAVIRUS vaccines to US authorities, CEO Stéphane Bancel told the Financial Times. These doses are for the worldwide COVAX initiative, which aims to transfer drugs to poor countries.

“It was mainly a political decision of the rich countries. In the US, we were told that we had no choice but to give 60% of our production to the US government. it was not Moderna's decision, it was the US government's decision," he said.

Bancel noted that as a result, 70 million doses of the vaccine intended for the COVAX program were stuck in warehouses. “This is because they either do not have customs documents, or there is no place in refrigerators, or because it is a very difficult task to give an injection,” the HEAD of Moderna ironically says.

As The Washington Post noted, the White House is facing pressure from activists and some senators to expand the vaccine assistance program to poor countries. Such appeals were prepared by Democratic senators who demanded to put pressure on Moderna. The World HEALTH Organization noted that only five out of 54 African countries plan to fully vaccinate at least 40% of their inhabitants by the end of the year. Against this background, Washington decided to step up efforts to produce vaccines and transfer them to the international COVAX program.

White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff Zints said the United States has donated 250 million doses of vaccines, more than all other countries combined. At the same time, the Joe Biden administration announced the launch of a new program to stimulate the production of vaccines. Under this program, the US authorities will partner with private manufacturers, such as Moderna, and provide them with financial support to expand production.