The Biden administration on Wednesday announced a $3.2 billion deal to purchase 105 million doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for a fall vaccination campaign, with options to buy up to 300 million doses.
The contract includes a combination of adult and pediatric doses, and supplies of a re-formulated booster shot that will contain the original Wuhan variant and BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday advised COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers to produce the updated booster vaccine — which has not yet undergone human clinical trials — for this fall.
“This agreement will provide additional doses for U.S. residents and help cope with the next COVID-19 wave,” Sean Marett, chief business and chief commercial officer of BioNTech, said in a statement. “Pending regulatory authorization, it will also include an Omicron-adapted vaccine, which we believe is important to address the rapidly spreading Omicron variant.”
The announcement followed Tuesday’s meeting of the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, which recommended including an Omicron component in future COVID-19 booster vaccines.
“Vaccines have been a game-changer in our fight against COVID-19, allowing people to return to normal activities knowing that vaccines protect from severe illness,” said Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to doing everything we can to continue to make vaccines free and widely available to Americans — and this is an important first step to preparing us for the fall.”
However, U.S. taxpayers will fund the $3.2 billion campaign, just as they also paid $1.95 billion for the original 100 million doses obtained under Operation Warp Speed, and $19.50 per dose for 500 million more doses obtained through the government’s option contract.
“Earlier this month, in the absence of additional COVID-19 funding from Congress, the Administration was forced to reallocate $10 billion in existing funding, pulling billions of dollars from COVID-19 response efforts in order to pay for additional vaccines and treatments,” HHS said in a statement. “The funding for this new Pfizer contract is being paid for with a portion of that reallocated funding.”
“The White House has dropped all pretense that this is about protecting public health,” said Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., chairman and chief legal counsel for Children’s Health Defense. “This is an unsheathed, corporate welfare project to further enrich the shareholders of the most profitable industry in history.”
“It’s almost as if these states — and their citizens — are paying for these vaccines twice over: once to bankroll much, or nearly all, of the research itself, then again to buy back the products of this public-funded research,” Quartz reported last month. “Pharma corporations benefit hugely from this model.”
Pfizer said in May it expects about $32 billion in COVID-19 vaccine sales for 2022, but the figure was based on agreements signed before the new contract announced this week.
Pfizer on June 23 approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.40 per share.
Under the new Pfizer deal, the U.S. government is set to pay more than $30 per dose on average, which is significantly higher than the $19.50 it paid in its initial Pfizer contract.
As early as Feb. 26, 2021, Pfizer was planning for a “potential rapid adoption” of its COVID-19 vaccine to allow for the development of booster vaccines within weeks. This “regulatory pathway” is already established for other infectious diseases, such as influenza, Pfizer said in a statement.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said the company was “making the right investments and engaging in the appropriate conversations with regulators” to help position the company to “potentially develop and seek authorization for an updated mRNA vaccine or booster if needed.”
During a February 2021 earnings call, Bourla told analysts, big banks and investors the company could make significant profits as demand for its COVID-19 vaccine subsidies by charging higher prices and implementing routine booster doses for new variants of the virus.
During the Barclays’ Global Health Conference in March 2021, former Pfizer CFO Frank D’Amelio said the company doesn’t see this as a one-time event, but “as something that’s going to continue for the foreseeable future.”
“Every year, you need to go to get your flu vaccine,” Pfizer CEO Bourla said. “It’s going to be the same with COVID. In a year, you will have to go and get your annual shot for COVID to be protected.”
© 2022 Children’s Health Defense, Inc. This work is reproduced and distributed with the permission of Children’s Health Defense, Inc. Want to learn more from Children’s Health Defense? Sign up for free news and updates from Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and the Children’s Health Defense. Your donation will help to support us in our efforts.
Why the National Debt Is the Looming Threat to Your Retirement Plans
The Hidden Crisis No One Is Talking About
Every day, headlines warn about inflation, market volatility, and global instability—but the greatest looming threat to your retirement might be something far more fundamental: America’s skyrocketing national debt.
You can learn more about how the national debt affects you by reading this 3-minute report titled, “Debt Will Hit $40T in 2026: Prepare Your Retirement Now“.
With debt growing faster than most Americans can possibly fathom, the government’s borrowing habits have reached historic—and dangerous—levels. To cover spending, Washington is making moves with their budget packages, tariffs, and taxes. Is it enough? No. It’s not even close to what would be necessary to stop out-of-control debt, let alone reverse it.
How Debt Erodes Your Nest Egg
There are only so many levers government and the Federal Reserve can pull to try to protect Americans, assuming that’s even a top priority for them. Unfortunately, pulling one level to relive one pressure invariably adds pressure from another direction. This is why prices keep going up even as inflation reportedly slows.
For retirees and pre-retirees, that’s a perfect storm. The dollars you’ve worked hard to save lose value, and your cost of living increases while your investments lag behind.
If you’re relying solely on paper-based assets—stocks, bonds, or mutual funds—you’re essentially tied to the same system that’s creating the problem. It’s a system that was designed to work well in the 20th century, not in today’s world with people living longer and the dollar rapidly losing value.
This is why the 3-minute report, “Debt Will Hit $40T in 2026: Prepare Your Retirement Now,” is so important.
The Precious Metals Hedge
Thousands of Americans are looking for a tangible, time-tested hedge: physical gold and silver.
Unlike paper assets, precious metals aren’t dependent on government policy or the stock market’s mood swings. They’re real, finite resources that have maintained value for thousands of years through wars, recessions, and inflationary periods.
In fact, during times of high inflation and fiscal instability, gold often performs its best—because it’s seen as a store of value when faith in the dollar weakens. This is why prices have skyrocketed this year and are expected by many economists to continue going up in the future.
Take Control with a Gold IRA
One of the most effective ways to protect your retirement from national debt fallout is through a self-directed Gold IRA. This IRS-approved account lets you hold physical gold and silver within your retirement portfolio, giving you:
- Direct ownership of your assets
- A hedge against inflation and dollar decline
- The control to diversify beyond Wall Street
Augusta Precious Metals specializes in helping Americans just like you take this step with confidence. The company has earned a strong reputation for transparency, education, and personalized service—making it one of the most trusted names in the industry.
The Next Step: Secure Your Financial Future
Augusta Precious Metals has helped thousands of Americans with at least $50,000 to invest from their IRAs, 401(K)s, TSPs, and other retirement accounts safeguard their savings through precious metals.
If you’re concerned about what the rising national debt could mean for your future, now is the time to act.
Read this 3-minute report titled, “Debt Will Hit $40T in 2026: Prepare Your Retirement Now“ and learn the simple steps you can take to protect your retirement.
