Researchers currently do not know how long vaccines provide protection against coronavirus.
The head of Pfizer said people would “probably” need a third dose of his company’s COVID-19 shot six to 12 months after vaccination, while defending the relatively higher cost of the jab.
CEO Albert Bourla also said that annual coronavirus vaccinations may be needed.
“We have to see what the sequence would be and how often we have to do that, it remains to be seen,” Bourla told CNBC in an interview on Thursday.
“A likely scenario is that there will probably be a need for a third dose, somewhere between six and 12 months and then from there, there will be an annual revaccination, but all of that needs to be confirmed,” he said, adding that the variants will play a ” key role ”.
“It is extremely important to suppress the group of people who may be susceptible to the virus.”
Researchers currently do not know how long vaccines provide protection against coronavirus.
Earlier this month, Pfizer published a study stating that its cage is over 91% effective in protecting against coronavirus and over 95% effective against severe cases of COVID-19 up to six months after the second dose.
But researchers say more data is needed to determine whether protection lasts after six months.
Rising prices
Bourla also defended the price of his company’s vaccine, saying they save lives and will not be sold to poor countries for profit.
“Vaccines are very expensive,” Bourla said in an interview with several European news outlets.
“It saves lives, allows economies to reopen, but we sell them at the price of a meal,” he said.
According to data published a few months ago by a member of the Belgian government, the Jab coronavirus Pfizer was the most expensive for the European Union, along with the Moderna vaccine.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov explained earlier this week that the price of the vaccine rises as sales are negotiated, costing up to 19.50 euros ($ 23), up from 12 euros ($ 14).
Prices are in stark contrast to the vaccine produced by British-Swedish doctor AstraZeneca, who pledged not to make a profit from his product during the pandemic and sold it to the EU for less than two euros ($ 2.39) per unit.
Bourla did not confirm the price of the Pfizer vaccine, but acknowledged that it was sold at a higher price to developed countries such as the US or the EU.
“In middle-income countries, we sell it at half price,” he said. “In poorer countries, including Africa, we sell it at a price.”