Moderna-NIH Agreement on Publicly-Funded Discovery Will Be Dwarfed by Moderna’s Unconscionable Price Spike

Contact Your Elected Officials

WASHINGTON – Moderna reported that it has reached a $400 million agreement with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the rights to use publicly-funded technology that was key to the success of the NIH-Moderna COVID vaccine. Public Citizen was the first to reveal that Moderna and others had used a publicly-funded, NIH-engineered solution to freeze spike proteins to keep their shape, which was a crucial step for producing a stronger immune response in the COVID vaccines. Columbia Law School clinical professor Christopher Morten subsequently demonstrated Moderna’s infringement of the patent.

Public Citizen, PrEP4All, and other advocacy groups called on the U.S. government to ensure accessible pricing and equitable global access in its license negotiations. Next month, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel will appear before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, chaired by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), to discuss Moderna’s proposed price hike on the vaccine. Peter Maybarduk, director of the Access to Medicines program at Public Citizen, released the following statement:

“This remedy for Moderna’s use of publicly-owned technology key to its success is not remotely sufficient.

“Moderna’s catch-up payment to NIH amounts to little more than 1% of its $36 billion in global sales. That modest return to taxpayers will be dwarfed, probably many times over, by Moderna’s harmful and grotesque proposed 400% price spike.

“Considering Moderna’s soup-to-nuts reliance on U.S. government support, the public deserves a much better deal, including vaccines made available free or at cost today.

“The government should have insisted on affordability from the start, and should insist on essentially free vaccines today. There would be no NIH-Moderna vaccine without the NIH.

“Fortunately, Moderna will be held to account on March 22, when CEO Stephane Bancel will appear before the Senate and the people at Chairman Bernie Sanders’ hearing on Moderna’s outrageous vaccine price spike.”

About Public Citizen

Public Citizen is a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization that champions the public interest in the halls of power. We defend democracy, resist corporate power and work to ensure that government works for the people – not for big corporations. Founded in 1971, we now have 500,000 members and supporters throughout the country.

Originally Published on February 24, 2022

Read Original Press Release on Citizen.org

The Thinking Conservative
The Thinking Conservativehttps://www.thethinkingconservative.com/
The goal of THE THINKING CONSERVATIVE is to help us educate ourselves on conservative topics of importance to our freedom and our pursuit of happiness. We do this by sharing conservative opinions on all kinds of subjects, from all types of people, and all kinds of media, in a way that will challenge our perceptions and help us to make educated choices.

No Kings Exposes Odd Things!

The “No Kings” protests held around the nation are not grassroots spontaneous people’s protests but are highly organized events by paid provocateurs.

President Trump Needs Much Better Protection

President Trump faces threats from foreign adversaries and domestic radicals prone to violence, people suffering from severe “TDS.”

Science Has Finally Come For Transgenderism

British biologist Richard Dawkins said “trans women are men,” calling transgender ideology a movement that undermines biological truth.

Trump is Coming for Antifa

Liberals say there is no organization called “Antifa”. Conservatives say Antifa is real and we now know how it is funded. What should we believe?

The Pentagon vs. the Free Press (or What’s Left of It)

Reporting what the government would rather not have reported is not just an essential function but a duty of a free press in a representative system.

Government Shutdown Could End This Week: White House Economist

In an interview, Kevin Hassett stated that a chorus of Senate Democrats thought it would be “bad optics” to reopen the govt before the “No Kings” rallies.

Vehicle Hit With Artillery Shrapnel During Marine Ceremony: California Highway Patrol

Metal shrapnel from a Marine Corps live-fire exercise at Camp Pendleton’s 250th anniversary damaged a CHP vehicle near a major highway, officials said.

World’s Most Advanced AI Chips Now Being Made in America Due to Trump’s Policies: Nvidia Chief

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang credited Trump’s tariffs and manufacturing push for enabling U.S. production of the firm’s advanced Blackwell AI chips.

Artillery Fire at Vance’s Marine Corps Celebration Sparks Friction With Newsom

Marine officials said firing artillery at Camp Pendleton is routine and disrupting traffic on I-5 is unnecessary, but Newsom closed portions of I-5 anyway.

President Signs Rare Earth Agreement With Australia’s PM

President Trump hosted Australian PM Albanese at the White House, where both leaders signed a new agreement on rare earth mineral cooperation.

Trump Says Insurrection Act Is ‘Strongest Power a President Has’

President Trump detailed plans to invoke the Insurrection Act to address rampant crime, calling it the “strongest power a president has.”

Army Corps of Engineers to Pause $11 Billion in Projects During Shutdown: Vought

Russ Vought, director of the White House’s OMB, has added to the growing pile of federal projects paused during the government shutdown.

Trump Signs Executive Order Putting New Restrictions on Federal Hiring

Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to restrict hiring, with exceptions for immigration, security, and political appointees.
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

MAGA Business Central