What is the 'reasonable' price for future COVID-19 vaccines?
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Major pharmaceutical companies from across the globe are working and conducting trials of their candidate vaccines to fast-track mass inoculation.
COVID-19 Vaccines Price -The race to successfully deploy a coronavirus vaccine gets fiercer every day. Major pharmaceutical companies from across the globe are working and conducting trials of their candidate vaccines to fast-track mass inoculation.
But what is the most reasonable price for a successful COVID-19 vaccine?
According to a senior pharmaceutical industry official, the reasonable price for a single dose of COVID-19 vaccines should be between $6-18 (5-15 euros) .
Sue Middleton, President of the Executive Board of Vaccines Europe, during a hearing at the European Union Parliament said that this is a “reasonable price for a vaccine”. Vaccines Europe speaks for big pharmaceutical companies.
With flu season coming up across the world, people requiring medical attention is expected to shoot up, and health officials are urging people to stay at home to avoid strain.
South Korea recently suspended free flu shots after reports of trouble in storing the vaccines, given the situation of the healthcare system due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The United States, which has the world’s highest number of coronavirus cases, is also preparing for flu season. Over 200,000 people have died due to COVID-19 in the country. On an average, the US is losing 800 people every day.
"We need to hunker down and get through this fall and winter, because it's not going to be easy," Dr Anthony Fauci had said during a discussion with doctors earlier this month at Harvard Medical School.
“We've been through this before," he said. "Don't ever, ever underestimate the potential of the pandemic. And don't try and look at the rosy side of things”, he added.
On Monday, 156 nations joined a global scheme to distribute vaccines around the world fairly. Led by the World Health Organization (WHO), the alliance was joined by almost all major countries except the United States and China.