Bavarian Nordic Charged UNICEF Up to $10 More Per Dose of Mpox Vaccine Than U.S.

October 1, 2024

Bavarian Nordic Charged UNICEF Up to $10 More Per Dose of Mpox Vaccine Than U.S.

New Public Citizen Research Reveals Disparity

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Amid the mpox global health emergency, UNICEF announced last week it negotiated "the lowest market price"on behalf of low-income countries for one million doses of Bavarian Nordic's mpox vaccine, Jynneos (MVA-BN), at up to $65 per dose, but according to new Public Citizen research, the U.S. government appears to pay less, around $55 per dose.

Peter Maybarduk, Public Citizen's Access to Medicines director, says these new findings once again highlight the vaccine access disparity between low- to middle-income countries and wealthy countries due to Bavarian Nordic's seemingly abusive business practices.

"Poor countries shouldn't pay more than rich countries for vaccines," said Maybarduk. "Bavarian Nordic continues to take advantage of this global health crisis by charging UNICEF too much for Jynneos. Despite UNICEF's efforts to support mpox vaccine access, Bavarian Nordic's high prices compromise the global response by needlessly taking money for shareholders that should go to testing, communities and health workers. It's past time to support sustainable production by, and for, developing countries that are fighting mpox every day. "

Public Citizen identified nine global manufacturers, including six in low- and middle-income countries, with experience making vaccines using similar processes to Bavarian Nordic's. Manufacturers in these countries sell these vaccines for less than $5 per dose-a fraction of the price Bavarian Nordic charges. In August, Public Citizen called on Bavarian Nordicto be transparent about its pricing practices and lower the price of Jynneos for the sake of public health. Bavarian Nordic has yet to provide meaningful justification for its prices.

As detailed in the report, the U.S. government has a long-standing relationship with Bavarian Nordic; the feds awarded the biotech company over $2.3 billion to support the development, licensure and procurement of its vaccine technology and provided additional support for clinical trials and funding to start U.S.-based production.

Maybarduk said the U.S. government "should leverage its position with Bavarian Nordic to push the company to lower prices, share technology and take a more transparent and public health-oriented approach."