Pfizer and Moderna have both made clear that they see their COVID vaccination businesses as long-term profit drivers, not the public service that enabled them to receive billions of dollars in public money to effectively subsidize their development.
And now that jabs from China and Russia are facing newfound scepticism across Europe and the emerging world, Big Pharma is showing its true colors, and demanding a massive premium from all buyers of its jabs as Pfizer rolls out its first booster jabs.
It’s interesting that they’re raising prices, considering that the Pfizer jab hasn’t exactly held up to the original promise of its efficacy. Despite their original promises not to profit off the vaccines until the pandemic had ended, both companies are now seizing the opportunity to hike prices charged to governments like those in the EU.
According to the latest EU supply contracts seen by the FT, Pfizer raised the price of its COVID vaccine by more than 25% and Moderna raised its price by more than 10%. Both companies are expected to generate tens of billions of dollars in revenue this year as they sign new deals with countries anxious to secure supplies for potential booster shots.
