US Inks Vaccine Deal With Moderna as Bird Flu Threat Looms
Moderna gets $176 million to help develop an mRNA pandemic flu shot.
Moderna Inc.’s headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on March 26.
Photographer: Adam Glanzman/BloombergModerna Inc. secured nearly $200 million from the US government to speed development of an mRNA vaccine for pandemic influenza as a dangerous strain of bird flu sweeps through the nation’s dairy farms, fueling concern about a budding health crisis.
The Department of Health and Human Services awarded Moderna $176 million to help pay for late-stage clinical trials that will start in 2025, Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response, said in an exclusive interview. The vaccine will be tailored so it can target several influenza strains with pandemic potential, including the family of bird flu viruses currently in circulation.