Feb. 15 (UPI) — Moderna has announced it will continue to offer its COVID-19 vaccines for free, even after the U.S. government officially ends its public health emergency in May.
Moderna announced its “commitment to patient access” Wednesday, promising to continue to provide COVID-19 vaccines at no cost.
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“As the public health emergency ends, the United States government will no longer be providing vaccines at no cost. Moderna remains committed to ensuring that people in the United States will have access to our COVID-19 vaccines regardless of ability to pay,” the drug company said.
Last month, the Biden administration announced it would end the COVID-19 national and public health emergencies on May 11, more than three years after they were enacted at the start of the pandemic.
During the emergencies, the government paid for all COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments.
Moderna, which was granted an emergency-use authorization for the vaccine in December of 2020, is promising to extend its free COVID-19 vaccines beyond May when those emergencies end.
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“Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines will continue to be available at no cost for insured people whether they receive them at their doctors’ offices or local pharmacies. For uninsured or underinsured people, Moderna’s patient assistance program will provide COVID-19 vaccines at no cost,” the company said.
“Everyone in the United States will have access to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine regardless of their ability to pay.”
Moderna’s announcement Wednesday comes more than a month after the company’s chief executive officer told The Wall Street Journal that Moderna was considering quadrupling the price of its COVID-19 vaccines to $110 or $130 a dose.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., blasted the potential price increase in a letter to Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel calling it “outrageous.” Bancel is scheduled to appear before Sanders and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on March 22 to answer questions about prescription drug prices and drug company profiteering.
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Last week, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice — a medical panel that advises the U.S. government on immunizations — added COVID-19 vaccines to the list of routine immunizations recommended for all American adults, a sign that the virus is not going anywhere.
“This reiterates that COVID has gone from pandemic to endemic,” said Dr. Sandra Adamson Fryhofer, an Atlanta-based physician who serves as an ACIP liaison. “For now, it looks like it’s here to stay.”
