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WASHINGTON: The American biotech firm Moderna said yesterday that it was seeking authorization from regulators around the world to put 50% more coronavirus vaccine in each of its vials as a way to rapidly increase current supply levels.
The company issued a statement after The New York Times first reported that the US Food and Drug Administration had already authorized it to increase levels by 40 percent.
“To better maximize resources and maximize opportunities to deliver more doses to each market faster, Moderna proposed filling vials with up to 15 doses of vaccine compared to the previous 10 doses,” a spokesperson said in a statement to AFP.
The spokesperson added that the company was participating in discussions with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and authorities in other countries, and increasing the dose level would not require vials other than those currently used. .
“Any resulting change would be subject to final approval by the various regulatory authorities. The implementation of such changes is expected to be completed in approximately two to three months, ”he said.
Citing sources close to the matter, the Times reported that the FDA had agreed that Moderna use 14 doses per vial, compared to the previous 10.
This would require remodeling of production lines that would take less than 10 weeks, or before the end of April, the newspaper said.
“It would be a big step forward,” Moncef Slaoui, who was the senior scientific advisor to the federal vaccine development program under former President Donald Trump, told the Times.
“I think it will have an impact in the short term.”
About 10 percent of Americans have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine so far, with Moderna accounting for just under half the number and Pfizer just over half.
The Biden administration announced Thursday that it had reached an agreement with both companies to supply a total of 600 million doses of its two-shot courses by the end of July, enough to cover 90 percent of the US population. – AFP
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