Comparing Covid-19 Vaccine Prices Globally
Pharma giant (J&J) has offered its widely authorised, one-shot Covid-19 vaccine to countries on a not-for-profit basis since the jab was first approved 鈥� but it appears this could soon change. The company鈥檚 executive vice president Ashley McEvoy suggested in a recent that it was looking at moving into a commercial market either late next year or in 2023.
The switch to a commercial pricing model will come after full regulatory approval of the vaccine 鈥� J&J鈥檚 shot is currently only available under emergency use authorisation 鈥� but McEvoy indicated that the company is gearing up to file for approval soon.
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By GlobalDataMajor Covid-19 vaccine maker has also pledged to provide jabs on a not-for-profit basis until the end of the pandemic 鈥� though it has reserved the right to decide when that is 鈥� while other frontrunners like and have already made a fortune from their coronavirus vaccines.
Vaccine pricing policies
Last summer, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told that he expected the company to make a 鈥渧ery marginal profit鈥� at that stage in the pandemic. Just a year later, Pfizer forecasted it would reap , following a series of lucrative supply deals with the world鈥檚 wealthiest countries.
Similarly, CEO Stephane Bancel back at the start of the pandemic that 鈥渢here is no world, I think, where we would contemplate to price [the Covid-19 vaccine] higher than other respiratory virus vaccines鈥�. While it鈥檚 true that jabs for respiratory diseases can carry price tags ranging from tens to hundreds of dollars per dose, Moderna鈥檚 Covid-19 vaccine is among the priciest on the market, with per-dose costs ranging between $32 and $37 for .
Both Pfizer and Moderna for their products this year; the EU will now pay $23.15 per dose of Pfizer鈥檚 jab (up from 鈧�$18.40), while Moderna is charging $25.50 for doses that previously cost around $22.60. The latter鈥檚 American-made vaccine is considerably cheaper in the US, where each dose costs about $15, while Pfizer is charging the US government , up from the $19.50 paid in earlier deals.
Bourla told : 鈥淭he price from the high-income countries is the cost of a takeaway meal 鈥� But for the middle-income countries, we are charging half of this price, and the low-income countries we are charging basically at non-for-profit.鈥�
J&J, which is currently offering its jab on a not-for-profit basis, has priced the vaccine at $10 per dose 鈥� though the than other countries, at $8.50. AstraZeneca鈥檚 Vaxzevria is the cheapest of the leading vaccines, costing as little as $3.16 per dose for Brazil and ranging between $3.50 and $6 elsewhere.
Which countries are paying more for vaccines?
As the debate about vaccine inequity in low-income countries rages on, even nations with access to the leading Covid-19 jabs are paying wildly different prices for doses.
African nations have struggled to secure sufficient vaccine supplies throughout the pandemic, and some are being charged considerably more for doses than their wealthy counterparts. South Africa 鈥� the worst hit of all African countries 鈥� is per dose of the AstraZeneca jab, while European countries are being charged just $3.50. The price tag is even steeper for Uganda, which is reportedly for each dose of AstraZeneca鈥檚 two-shot vaccine.
Earlier this year, offered its vaccine to South Africa at 鈥� significantly more costly than the $32 to $37 range paid by higher-income countries for the same jab. Botswana鈥檚 government also confirmed this summer that the country is paying almost , a far higher price point than those agreed for the US and EU.
Colombia, another country hit particularly hard by the virus, is paying around of Moderna鈥檚 vaccine 鈥� double the amount the US has been charged. by the People鈥檚 Vaccine Alliance, based on the estimated production costs of Moderna and Pfizer鈥檚 Covid-19 vaccines, found that Colombia has potentially overpaid by as much as $375m for both companies鈥� shots combined.
Bangladesh is reportedly of AstraZeneca鈥檚 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, compared to the $3.50 paid by EU member states buying directly from the British vaccine maker.
Though some of the prices negotiated between vaccine makers and governments are publicly available, a general lack of transparency regarding vaccine supply deals makes it difficult to scrutinise and understand the discrepancies in fees paid by rich and less wealthy nations.
Commenting on the findings by the People鈥檚 Vaccine Alliance, UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima said: 鈥淗ealth workers are dying on the frontline all over the world every single day. Uganda alone lost more than 50 health workers in just two weeks.
鈥淎 reminder of the time when millions of people were dying of HIV in developing countries because the medicines that could save them were priced too high.鈥�
Additional research and data visualisation by Andrew Hillman
