Company executives for Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Novavax announced market prices for updated COVID-19 vaccine doses at an advisory meeting with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday.
The Food and Drug Administration gave approval on Monday for the COVID-19 vaccines for the three respective manufacturers based on its recommendation of a monovalent vaccine targeting the omicron XBB.1.5 strain of the virus.
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Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna will be charging between $120 and $130 for the singular dose of their mRNA vaccines. The Novavax vaccine, which is simpler to produce than the mRNA vaccines, will cost approximately $72.50 per dose.
In July, the Biden administration announced it would begin the commercialization of COVID-19 vaccine doses, establishing traditional market pathways for vaccine rollout rather than purchase and dissemination by the U.S. government under emergency measures.
The CDC, however, is administering the Bridge Access Program for COVID-19 vaccine doses, which will, for a limited time, provide free doses to the 30 million uninsured people and those whose insurance will not cover the costs of the vaccine doses.
CVS, Walgreens, and other pharmacies have already coordinated with the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure equitable vaccine access, per the CDC.
"Ultimately, we know that vaccines save money and lives. Vaccination is especially important as we head into fall and winter, a time when COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases are likely to circulate," CDC Director Mandy Cohen said at the time of the announcement.
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Although public health organizations are monitoring new variants, including the highly mutated BA 2.86, the FDA said in its approval announcement on Monday that new monovalent vaccines will be "a good match for protecting against the currently circulating COVID-19 variants."
Representatives at the CDC advisory meeting on Tuesday indicated that various strains of omicron XBB are still dominant among the circulating SARS-CoV-2 viruses despite concerns regarding BA 2.86.