5 ms·

Is $19 per dose expensive? Not knowing anything about pharma costs, it seems about what it'd expect. Especially compared to the economic savings.

alostpuppy 5y ago
Wow, I agree. That seems like a deal given all the special extra cold handling you have to do with it.
- OJFord 5y ago
  That's not $19 administered, that's $19 to acquire it and the privilege of having 'all the special extra cold handling' to do.
albatross13 5y ago
I think it is, when you read Pfizer's contract and fact0r in things like "Governments have to pay, regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all". I suggest you browse their leaked contract: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20616251-albanian-pfizer-covid-19-vaccine-contract https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20616251-albanian-pf... Pfizer has also been strong arming small, Latin American countries, to the tune of trying to get military assets as "collateral" (https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/company-news/pfizer-latin-american-vaccine/ https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/company-news/...)
- nitrogen 5y ago
  regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all Weren't extremely generous provisions like that offered by the US government last year in order to jumpstart vaccine development and production ASAP?
  - parineum 5y ago
    Yes, that's operation warp speed and it worked great. That's the reason the US.had vaccine enough to go around while Canada was struggling to get everyone their first dose.
- giarc 5y ago
  >Governments have to pay, regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all Wouldn't this be standard language in any contract? If I buy a widget and they ship it to me, if it gets damaged in transit, or lost in transit I still have to pay the producer, I then go after the delivery company (and/or their insurance) for compensation.
  - OJFord 5y ago
    I've never handled such things for a business, but I'd assume it'd be the same as in my personal life - that's the seller's problem? If something arrives (late, if I care) damaged, or not at all, from Amazon or whatever, I tell them and they refund me or ship a replacement.
  - 55555 5y ago
    It depends. Sometimes you buy EXW, sometimes FOB, sometimes delivery is guaranteed. Just depends on the deal. But mostly, yes, you're right.
OJFord 5y ago
I don't really know how to determine a fair price other than letting them compete with Moderna et al. Traditional flu jabs apparently [0] cost the NHS £5-8 (<$11) per dose; the Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine seems in-line with that charging $2-5 non-profit for the duration of the pandemic [1]. But I don't know how comparable that is to Pfizer's given that the latter's different, newer (mRNA) tech AIUI? (Perhaps that's a disservice to the researchers at AZ/Oxford, I don't know.) [0] - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/17/nhs-attempts-save-3-per-flu-jab-have-fuelled-winter-crisis-japanese/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/17/nhs-attempts-sav... [1] - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/11/covid-19-vaccines-the-contracts-prices-and-profits https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/11/covid-19-vacci...

alostpuppy 5y ago

Wow, I agree. That seems like a deal given all the special extra cold handling you have to do with it.

OJFord 5y ago
That's not $19 administered, that's $19 to acquire it and the privilege of having 'all the special extra cold handling' to do.

albatross13 5y ago

I think it is, when you read Pfizer's contract and fact0r in things like "Governments have to pay, regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all". I suggest you browse their leaked contract: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20616251-albanian-pfizer-covid-19-vaccine-contract https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20616251-albanian-pf... Pfizer has also been strong arming small, Latin American countries, to the tune of trying to get military assets as "collateral" (https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/company-news/pfizer-latin-american-vaccine/ https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/company-news/...)

nitrogen 5y ago
regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all Weren't extremely generous provisions like that offered by the US government last year in order to jumpstart vaccine development and production ASAP?
- parineum 5y ago
  Yes, that's operation warp speed and it worked great. That's the reason the US.had vaccine enough to go around while Canada was struggling to get everyone their first dose.
giarc 5y ago
>Governments have to pay, regardless of whether or not the shipment arrives: on time, damaged, or at all Wouldn't this be standard language in any contract? If I buy a widget and they ship it to me, if it gets damaged in transit, or lost in transit I still have to pay the producer, I then go after the delivery company (and/or their insurance) for compensation.
- OJFord 5y ago
  I've never handled such things for a business, but I'd assume it'd be the same as in my personal life - that's the seller's problem? If something arrives (late, if I care) damaged, or not at all, from Amazon or whatever, I tell them and they refund me or ship a replacement.
- 55555 5y ago
  It depends. Sometimes you buy EXW, sometimes FOB, sometimes delivery is guaranteed. Just depends on the deal. But mostly, yes, you're right.

OJFord 5y ago

I don't really know how to determine a fair price other than letting them compete with Moderna et al. Traditional flu jabs apparently [0] cost the NHS £5-8 (<$11) per dose; the Astrazeneca Covid-19 vaccine seems in-line with that charging $2-5 non-profit for the duration of the pandemic [1]. But I don't know how comparable that is to Pfizer's given that the latter's different, newer (mRNA) tech AIUI? (Perhaps that's a disservice to the researchers at AZ/Oxford, I don't know.) [0] - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/17/nhs-attempts-save-3-per-flu-jab-have-fuelled-winter-crisis-japanese/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/17/nhs-attempts-sav... [1] - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/11/covid-19-vaccines-the-contracts-prices-and-profits https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/11/covid-19-vacci...