Back in July, Pfizer signed a $1.95 billion contract with the US government. The company was supposed to deliver 100 million doses of its vaccine if it was proven effective. Under the contract, near 50 million Americans will be vaccinated, that is, to make two injections per person. This contract was signed before the results of clinical trials. When it turned out that the new vaccine is 95% effective, Pfizer made a new proposal. According to the New York Times, this summer, Pfizer offered the US authorities to purchase another 100 million doses but Donald Trump turned down this offer. The newspaper unveiled this information, citing sources who were familiar with the negotiations between the US administration and representatives of the company.
Today, Pfizer's vaccine is in great demand. Many other countries have ordered the vaccine. So, the UK plans to purchase 40 million doses. The European Union accepted Pfizer's offer earlier this fall. It is going to buy 200 million doses. The agreement between the pharmaceutical company and the leaders of the European Union makes it possible to purchase additional delivery of 100 million doses of the drug. Given the growing demand, Pfizer can no longer guarantee the US government any additional supplies of the vaccine until next summer. The US can only count on additional support from Pfizer when the pharmaceutical company fulfills its obligations to other countries.
Despite the missed opportunity to buy the vaccine on time, the US administration said it would purchase the required amount from five other pharmaceutical companies, including 100 million doses from Moderna. Moreover, the US has contracts with vaccine manufacturers such as AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi, and others.
There is an opinion among experts that the current supplies received by the US government may not be enough to vaccinate the entire population of the country.
Pfizer has recently announced that it will be able to deliver only half of the previously agreed number of vaccines by the end of this year. In other words, instead of 100 million doses by the end of this year, the pharmaceutical company will deliver a total of only 50 million doses to customers.
This is largely due to the difficulties with the supply of raw materials at the first stages of production of the drug. Many deliveries failed quality checks and the expansion of the supply chain took much more time than previously expected. Moreover, the final outcome of the clinical trials was delayed.
Despite the fact that the supply problem has been almost resolved, the company will not be able to deliver 100 million doses by the end of this year due to the delay. Pfizer's plan for the release of the vaccine for 2021 remain the same: the pharmaceutical company intends to deliver 1 billion doses of the vaccine.