Pfizer and Moderna increase the price of their vaccines after adapting to coronavirus variants

The pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna will increase the prices of their vaccine for coronavirus for the European Union after having adapted them to the variants of the virus, the French Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Beaune, affirmed on Monday, confirming a news from the Financial Times.

“You have to look at all this with rationality, not be fooled, obviously, but have more demanding contracts, with products adapted to the variants, not only for the European Union, but for all buyers it will be a little more expensive”, Clément Beaune said in an interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI), without specifying the amount of the increase.

According to the British newspaper Financial Times, which was able to consult a contract concluded with the European Union, the price of the vaccine of Pfizer will go from 18.39 dollars to 23.14 dollars the unit and that of Moderna, from 22.50 dollars to 25.50 dollars.

“They are adapting them to the variants, as requested in the contracts that are being negotiated. We also ask that most of the production, almost 300 components of the vaccine, be produced in Europe.” Beaune added.

This increase occurs in full increase in cases in the Old Continent due to the delta variant, against which the vaccines of the American companies Pfizer and Moderna should be effective in preventing serious forms of the disease. coronavirus, according to the first studies.

The European countries’ joint vaccine purchase program purchased 330 million doses of the vaccine from Pfizer, 100 million from AstraZeneca, 50 million from Moderna and 20 million from Johnson & Johnson.

At the end of July, Pfizer expected to sell $ 33.5 billion worth of COVID-19 vaccines this year, well above the $ 26 billion that the company had forecast. Two months before. In May, Moderna expected annual sales of $ 19.5 billion.