Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Vaccine business: The days of free vaccines may soon end in the U.S.

Vaccine business: The days of free vaccines may soon end in the U.S.

The U.S. government is planning to stop paying for COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, and shift the bill onto the health care industry and eventually the consumer—possibly making it one of the first countries to end the practice of giving out coronavirus vaccines for free.

The Department of Health and Human Services will hold a planning session on Aug. 30, the Wall Street Journal reported, to bring together representatives from the health care industry as well as state health departments, to discuss the commercialization of COVID-19 treatments.

The move comes a few days after White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha confirmed on Tuesday that the Biden Administration had taken steps to get past the crisis phase of the pandemic and stop buying vaccines, treatments, and tests as early as fall.

“One of the things we’ve spent a lot of time thinking about in the last many months…is getting us out of that acute emergency phase where the U.S. government is buying the vaccines, buying the treatments, buying the diagnostic tests,” Jha said at an event sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

“My hope is that in 2023, you’re going to see the commercialization of almost all of these products. Some of that is actually going to begin this fall, in the days and weeks ahead,” Jha said.

It was always the plan under both the Trump and Biden administration to push the pricing and coverage control of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments onto the healthcare industry.

As COVID cases drop and the pandemic response funding runs short, the U.S. is determined to privatize COVID-19 treatment by the end of the year.

“We’ve known at some point we’d need to move over into the commercial market, and we’re approaching that time now,” Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary at HHS for preparedness and response, told the WSJ.


How it will work


The move to shift payments for COVID-19 drugs to the commercial market may still take months.

At the upcoming HHS meeting, company representatives and officials still need to discuss reimbursement and coverage, as well as regulatory, market dynamic, and equity issues.

Insurers and pharmacy benefit managers negotiating with drug manufacturers means prices would rise higher than what the federal government paid.

With each insurer paying for the vaccine, premiums are also likely to rise for the consumer, Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, told the WSJ.

“Without the government purchasing vaccine doses in advance, the U.S. may fall behind other countries in getting quick access to boosters and new variant-specific vaccines,” Levitt said.

A key point of the meeting will be discussing how the 30 million uninsured Americans will access COVID-19 resources.

“Right now everybody can walk into CVS and get a vaccine. I want to make sure when we make this transition, we don’t end up in a point where nobody can get a vaccine because we didn’t get the transition right,” Jha said at the event on Tuesday.

The move also might create a challenge for those suffering from long COVID, which is known to increase the risk of cognitive deficit (also known as brain fog), psychotic disorders, and epilepsy for two years after a COVID diagnosis, according to a study published in The Lancet Psychiatry on Wednesday.


Wrestling for funding


The Biden administration asked Congress in April for $10 billion to fund the ongoing pandemic response efforts. After failing to persuade Congress, White House officials said they would have to repurpose federal COVID-19 funds to supply more antiviral pills and vaccines.

As funding in government faltered, pharmaceutical companies have been eagerly watching the situation, as commercialization of COVID-19 treatments could bring a windfall worth billions of dollars in profits.

The 10 largest pharmaceutical companies by revenue brought in a collective $734.8 billion in revenue and $130.6 billion in profits in 2021, according to the 2022 Fortune Global 500, from the 12.2 billion doses that have been administered globally as of July 17.


AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
×