(Photo: Pfizer BioNTech)

The COVID-19 vaccine should be available by the end of 2020

The U.S. government just made a $1.95 billion deal with Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE to secure the first 600 million doses of a potential coronavirus (COVID-19). The U.S. will be following regulatory approval or authorization to pay the pharmaceutical companies to receive the vaccine doses.

The U.S. government will also have the ability to secure an additional 500 million doses if needed. Shortly after this announcement, BioNTech and Pfizer stock shares rose more than 5% in pre-market trading.

Nations have started the process of ordering vaccines that are still in testing trial phases. The U.S. has also secured a supply of the experimental COVID-19 vaccine, AZD1222, created by Oxford University and produced by AstraZeneca Plc.

Financial reports indicate that the first 100 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will cost approximately $20 per dose. Financial analysts predict if the vaccine proves successful after one use, it could generate $15 billion in revenue of Pfizer but this figure could change if this vaccine requires multiple doses.

BREAKING: The U.S. government taps Pfizer to produce and deliver 100 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine if it proves safe and effective in humans. https://t.co/VsalvTZX6n pic.twitter.com/ikwb4Psz8y

— CNBC (@CNBC) July 22, 2020

BioNTech’s vaccine program is valued at $11.7 billion and the cost will vary based on certain locations also considering different economic conditions. The estimated net price per dose will start at $36 in the U.S., $30 in the E.U., and $12 for the rest of the world.

Pfizer held a press conference in June and the Pfizer Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in regards to the common market principles, “If we try to calculate the value of the vaccine for the pricing like any other vaccine it would be unethical.

Some countries have secured multiple vaccine sources including the US, UK, and Europe but other countries have yet to secure a steady supply. According to the U.S. government, most Americans will have free access to the Pfizer vaccine as soon as the end of 2020 with the Operation Warp Speed initiative.