Pfizer is close to reaching an agreement with the US government to provide at least tens of millions of additional doses of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate next year in exchange for a government directive to give it better access to production consumables. , the New York Times reported Tuesday.
An agreement could be announced as early as Wednesday, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the talks.
Pfizer did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Pfizer and partner BioNTech SE, as well as rival Moderna Inc., recently won US emergency use authorization for their respective candidates.
The US government has signed an agreement with Pfizer for 100 million doses of its vaccine, which has begun to be launched across the country.
The government is asking for an additional 100 million doses from Pfizer from April to June, according to the NYT report.
Instead, the agreement calls on the government to invoke the Defense Production Act to give Pfizer better access to about nine specialty products it needs to make the vaccine, the report said.
© 2020 Thomson / Reuters. All rights reserved.