Pfizer To Supply US 500 Million COVID-19 Doses To Be Donated To Poorest Nations

Pfizer Inc. PFE and its German partner BioNTech SE BNTX said they plan to provide 500 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to the U.S. government for donation to the "poorest nations."

What Happened: The two companies said they will provide the 500 million doses of the vaccine to the U.S. government at a not-for-profit price. The companies will provide 200 million doses in 2021 and 300 million doses in the first half of 2022. Deliveries of the 200 million doses will begin in August 2021.

The vaccines will be donated by the government to about 100 low- and lower-middle-income countries including those in the African Union via the COVAX Facility. The COVAX vaccine program is backed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI).

These doses are part of Pfizer and BioNTech’s previously announced pledge to provide two billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to low- and middle-income countries over the next 18 months.

Why It Matters: The U.S. government had been under mounting pressure to share its surplus vaccine stockpile with other countries that are struggling with a surge in coronavirus cases. The U.S. vaccination campaign is already among the most successful in the world.

It was reported by Reuters on Wednesday that the Biden administration plans to purchase 500 million doses of Pfizer's mRNA COVID-19 vaccine to donate and share with hard-hit, resource poor countries in an effort to derail the global pandemic.

Price Action: Pfizer shares closed 2.5% higher in Wednesday’s trading at $39.81, while BioNTech’s shares closed 9.5% higher at $241.49.

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