November 5, 2021

As the coronavirus tore through the U.S. in August 2020, Trump administration officials, desperate for a vaccine, cut a generous deal with a tiny company that had received extensive aid from the federal government.

The pharmaceutical firm, Moderna, had already gotten a jump on designing a Covid-19 vaccine thanks to a partnership with the National Institutes of Health. Propelled by government scientists, it developed a promising candidate within weeks. And fueled by nearly $1 billion in federal funds for research and development, the company was closer than ever to delivering on the first drug of its decadelong existence. The deal the administration was proposing now would add another $1.5 billion to Moderna’s haul in exchange for up to 500 million doses of the vaccine — giving the U.S. first rights to a shot made possible by its own taxpayers.

But beyond that, the government asked for little in return. Moderna got full ownership of the lucrative technology critical to the vaccine’s success, despite its reliance on years of NIH research. The company would face no obligation to share those details with the U.S. — even as it reaped profits from vaccinating millions of Americans.

Read more:

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/11/05/trump-deal-moderna-global-vaccine-effort-519771