U.S. To Get 100 Million Doses of Pfizer Coronavirus Vaccine In $1.95 Billion Deal

The federal government has reached a $1.95 billion deal with Pfizer to acquire 100 million doses of its vaccine candidate against the coronavirus if the Food and Drug Administration OKs it. The vaccine would be free to Americans, according to the deal, though health care providers could charge to administer it.

The United States government has agreed to pay Pfizer $1.95 billion in exchange for 100 million doses of the company’s vaccine candidate; that is as long as the FDA approves the vaccine. This deal was announced by the Department of Health and Human Services in conjunction with the Department of Defense, in an effort to have a coronavirus vaccine widely available by January. Pfizer is working alongside BioNtech, a German company, on the vaccine, for which clinical trials began in April. "If the ongoing studies are successful, Pfizer and BioNTech expect to be ready to seek Emergency Use Authorization or some form of regulatory approval as early as October 2020," the company said in a statement. The agreement with the federal government also allows for the government to acquire an additional 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine.