What is the dose of the covid vaccine?

For more than two years now, the US government has purchased all of the COVID vaccines administered in the country, in what has become The largest public vaccination Campaign in American History.

Those purchases included more than 500 million doses from Pfizer. The first 100 million cost about $20 a dose, thanks to an earlier agreement involving the US government invested 1.95 billion dollars in vaccine production. The remaining doses were purchased About $30 each.

But once US government supplies run out (likely in the first quarter of 2023) and Covid vaccines and treatments are moved to commercial health platforms, Pfizer is able to raise the price of its shots.

The company announced on October 20 that it intends to sell the Covid vaccine, which is marketed under the brand name Kommernatefor $110 to $130 per serving.

That’s about four times the current selling price — and 100 times the estimated cost of manufacturing the vaccine.

The cost of producing a vial of the vaccine is estimated at $1.18

according to People’s Vaccine Alliance, a coalition of more than 100 organizations working to end vaccine inequality, Pfizer spends less than $1.20 to produce each dose of the vaccine. This estimate was extracted from an analysis by Oxfam International is a non-profit organizationBased on on data from Consumer Advocacy Public Citizen and the Imperial College, London.

Pfizer has not contested the estimate, which means the 2023 price represents a 10,000% increase over manufacturing cost. But the company offered an explanation for the high prices.

Why is Pfizer raising the price of its COVID-19 vaccine?

“There are key differences between the emergency model and the traditional model that increase the costs of making and distributing the COVID-19 vaccine,” Pfizer told Quartz via email. These costs include distribution through multiple channels and pushers rather than one, as well as producing the doses in single vials, which can be three times more expensive and lead to higher transportation costs, the company says.

Pfizer also says the company’s expectation is that most privately insured patients will continue not to pay for the vaccine, and that it will provide financial assistance to uninsured patients so they can continue to receive the vaccine for free.

Originally published at San Jose News Bulletin