This is How Much Pfizer and BioNTech Could Make from Their COVID Vaccine

    

US Big Pharma are on the run to produce their own COVID-19 vaccines. But how much will they really make from them?

 According to analysts from US bank Morgan Stanley, The US drugmaker Pfizer and German firm BioNTech could make a whopping $13 billion from their coronavirus vaccine on 2021, which will be split equally between the two companies.  

    Pfizer's half is even greater compared to what they made from the group's bestselling product yet, a pneumonia vaccine which gave rise to their $5.8 billion earnings last year.

Pfizer Takes a Different Path

    The pharmaceutical company agreed to give 100 million doses to the US for $39 which offers a two-shot course, or $19.50 per dose, with the choice to avail of another 500 million doses under new conditions.

    While other vaccine producers have committed to making the vaccine accessible and affordable for everyone during this pandemic, Pfizer took a unique stand on this matter. Seeing it as an opportunity for bigger profits, the group did not take part in the government's Operation Warp Speed, a vaccine program where they were supposed to receive research funds, which they turned down as well. Instead, Pfizer made use of its own budget amounting to $2 billion to develop its own vaccine along with BioNTech.

Where it Becomes Fishy

German's BioNTech received funding from its government amounting to €375 million together with a €100 million loan provided by the European Investment Bank. Compared to Pfizer with revenues of $52 billion from the past year, BioNTech is a small company with earnings of €109 million last year.

Moderna, another biotech firm from the US, has put a price of $32-$37 for a shot of their vaccine, despite receiving nearly $1 billion of research funds from the government.

The poverty charity Oxfam encouraged both companies to share the COVID vaccine with other developers, and added that the vaccine would be "zero percent effective to the people who can't access or afford it."

The Uplifting News

    Meanwhile, its rival US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson along with AstraZeneca, is producing its own vaccine with the cooperation of Oxford University. These companies have pledged to produce their vaccines on a not-for-profit basis, citing the current situation the world is facing.  

The World's Future with Big Pharma, if there's any

    With the current global situation, more pharmaceutical companies still opt to see things at a profitable perspective. With the US government's president-elect Biden appointing a COVID task force filled with highly qualified experts, this might offer the country a fresh chance to rise from the disasters the pandemic brought on its citizens. But how will this impact big pharma? Will Biden be supportive of these profit schemes upon taking over the government? It is important to note that during his campaign, Biden swore to be free from the influences of the big oil and big pharma industries, indicating that he would be tough on the said sectors. But recently, in what seemed to be a big turn of events, he appointed a number of people from the oil and pharmaceutical industries to be a part of his cabinet.

    This begs the question: What is the future of big pharma under Biden's administration? And will they continue to give priority to profit over people's health? I don't know about you, but hoping for more companies to step up their game and pledge for a more accessible healthcare wouldn't be so bad, right?