Five drugmakers — Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca and Novavax — are set to testify before a House committee Feb. 23 on their efforts to increase the U.S. COVID-19 vaccine supply.
Pfizer and Moderna are expected to promise to deliver a combined total of 220 million vaccine doses by March 31, The Washington Post reported.
In prepared testimony, Pfizer stated that improvements to its vaccine manufacturing process may allow it to ship 13 million doses of its vaccine per week to the U.S. government by mid-March, up from 4 million to 5 million doses per week, Bloomberg reported. Pfizer's chief business officer, John Young, said that by the end of July, the drugmaker should be able to ship all 300 million vaccine doses purchased by the U.S.
Moderna stated in prepared testimony that the FDA may soon allow it to put 15 vaccine doses in each vial, which could help it to quickly boost its vaccine supply, Bloomberg reported. The FDA said Feb. 12 that it could put 14 doses in the vials, which were previously approved to hold only 10 doses.
Moderna expects to double its monthly shipments to 40 million doses by April, NBC News reported. The drugmaker has so far delivered a total of 45 million doses.
Johnson & Johnson said it would manufacture 20 million doses of its vaccine by the end of March if it is granted emergency use authorization by the FDA. An FDA advisory committee meeting to review the vaccine's application is scheduled for Feb. 26, and approval could soon follow. The drugmaker's vaccine only requires one dose, so 20 million doses could fully vaccinate 20 million people.
By the end of April, Johnson & Johnson is projected to deliver nearly 60 million doses of its vaccine to the U.S., officials said, according to the Post.
The drugmakers are expected to discuss at the hearing other ways they plan to boost vaccine supplies, such as agreements with contract manufacturers and partnerships across the pharmaceutical industry to boost manufacturing capacity, Bloomberg reported.
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