RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga said that the portfolio is negotiating the acquisition of 100 million vaccine doses developed by the American company Moderna against Covid-19. The announcement was made on Monday morning, June 7. No further details were disclosed.
In March, the portfolio had negotiated the acquisition of 13 million vaccine doses developed by the company. The possibility of purchasing doses of this vaccine had been under discussion in a meeting between health officials and Moderna’s representatives.
The discussions began amid criticism of delays in closing agreements and at a time when the country was facing a new surge of the epidemic, with reports of healthcare system collapse in different states.
In a Senate hearing in February, then Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello commented on the prospect of buying Moderna’s vaccine, but complained about the amount demanded by the company.
“Moderna also presented us with a proposal for a very high price of US$37 a dose, and we agreed to negotiate, but they will not deliver before October,” he said about the proposal at the time.
Moderna has not yet requested approval to administer the vaccine in Brazil, which is required by ANVISA (Health Regulatory Agency). However, the immunizer has been approved by other recognized regulatory bodies, such as EMA (Europe) and FDA (United States).
During clinical trials, the vaccine recorded 94.1% efficacy in protecting symptomatic Covid-19 cases.
Moderna announced in May that its Covid-19 vaccine is “highly effective” in adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17, according to full clinical trial results. Moderna’s trial involved over 3,700 subjects between the ages of 12 and 17 in the United States, two-thirds of whom were administered the vaccine and one-third were given a placebo.
On Monday, June 7, the company announced that it has submitted applications for authorization to use its Covid-19 vaccine in adolescents in Canada and the European Union.