Access to COVID-19 vaccines, their effectiveness and safety have become everyone’s concern. What does not concern us so much, however, is the price of this little bite in the arm.
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It’s normal. Here, as in many countries, the population does not pay for vaccines. Well, not right away. The state, when it has the means, picks up the bill. That taxpayers will pay one day, but hey …
It is not certain that we will know the exact price that vaccines cost around the world, so much confusion reigns. What we do know is that this bill varies considerably from one country to another and from one vaccine to another and even for the same vaccine from one country to another. UNICEF, the United Nations agency dedicated to the well-being of children, takes this into account using publicly available data.
Each dose of vaccine costs US $ 1 to US $ 40, according to his most recent account. This selling price cannot be compared with the production costs, which are often minimal, but which must also take into account the investments in research and development which led to the production of the vaccines.
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The cost, which varies from US $ 1 to US $ 40 per dose, therefore, is the price paid by vaccine buyers, most often governments, but also private companies.
According to UNICEF figures, for a vaccine produced by the same company, such as Pfizer, the United States paid an average of US $ 19.50 per dose, which is 32% more than countries in the European Union. where the average cost is US $ 14.76 per dose for the same vaccine.
The United States paid more than Europe for all major vaccines (Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Sanofi) except one. Moderna’s vaccine cost less in the United States (US $ 15 per dose) than in Europe (US $ 18 per dose).
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Why such a disparity? It is difficult to explain, if not by the talent of those who negotiated the contracts with the pharmaceutical companies or by the willingness of certain buyers to pay more for more quickly.
Israel, which has won the vaccine race handily, has agreed to pay top dollar for it faster, according to reports circulating.
As with masks and medical equipment at the start of the pandemic, it’s a bit of the Wild West in the vaccine market.
COVAX
The poorest countries, which do not have the capacity to directly negotiate their vaccine supply, depend on COVAX, the program set up by the World Health Organization (WHO) to ensure equitable access vaccination.
As the vaccination percentage of their population increases, rich countries are more generous. The United States announced last week its intention to give 500 million doses to the most needy countries by 2022.
But this generosity comes late and is still quite insufficient. COVAX was able to deliver just 82 million doses of vaccine to countries in need, while 13.6 billion doses were sold worldwide. While an average of 1 in 4 people are vaccinated in rich countries, this proportion is 1 in 500 in poor countries. In Africa, 90% of countries will not be able to meet the WHO target of immunizing 10% of the world’s people by September.
While waiting for international charity, many countries are doing their best to find vaccines, sometimes on the private market. UNICEF figures show that poorer countries pay the most for their doses.
Life is priceless, and the cost of vaccines shouldn’t matter when it comes to fighting a global pandemic. But that is not what is happening. This is further proof that it is better to be rich and healthy than poor and sick.
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