News about COVID-19 vaccine candidates moving to clinical trials and showing promising early results brings the world hope—but also invites questions about when they will be approved, how they will be manufactured and distributed, and who will get them first. We have a new resource to answer some of these questions—as well as some wisdom from Moderna’s CEO about the outlook for a vaccine.
First, it’s important to understand how vaccines are procured and distributed. BIO released a new resource to explain the vaccine development, manufacturing, and distribution during a pandemic.
As BIO points out, public-private partnerships are essential. The federal government funds research on basic science, which drug manufacturing companies then turn into potential vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics—as we’re seeing more than 100 global companies doing right now.
Longer-term preparedness is also needed. That's why Congress should replenish and continue to fully fund BARDA, the Project BioShield Special Reserve Fund (SRF), and the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS)—as well as ensure biotech companies can recover investments, sustain manufacturing in the face of uncertainty, and reinvest funds into the post-market clinical, regulatory, and manufacturing lifecycle.
Because vaccine development is not easy,as Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel explains in an op-ed for the World Economic Forum. He describes the complex R&D process and why we should be cautiously hopeful.
But in this global crisis, it’s important to remember who the real enemy is—and the importance of collaboration. “Our perspective at Moderna is that the only competitor we are racing against is the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the resulting devastation it brings,” he continues. “To us, more vaccines are welcome in this battle—and they are critical to addressing the level of human need around the world.”
Learn more about the vaccine candidates from BIO members Moderna and Inovio on our blog.
Learn more about how the biotech industry is battling the coronavirus at www.bio.org/coronavirus.
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