The Biden Administration’s Strange, Secret Effort to Bail Out Moderna

Moderna, a pharmaceutical company, has already received $10 billion in funding from the United States government for its COVID-19 vaccine. However, their liability is still in question. According to a court filing last month, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has offered to relieve Moderna of any liability from a lawsuit accusing the company of not paying patented technology fees. The company has argued that the federal government should be responsible for the legal settlement because of a clause in their contract that protects them from patent litigation. The DOJ has implied that Moderna would not be held accountable, and any liability would be transferred to the United States government, citing a law that dates back to World War I protecting federal contractors from patent disputes.

This offer from the DOJ to bail out Moderna, if accepted, would require taxpayers to shoulder the legal payout. Already, Genevant is another company that has sued Moderna, accusing it of transferring responsibility for patent infringement to the U.S. taxpayer. Unfortunately, this action might not sit well with the Senate or the American public, especially since the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee has invited Moderna’s CEO, Stéphane Bancel, to testify on the company’s plan to quadruple the price of its COVID-19 vaccine.

Sen. Bernie Sanders has criticized Moderna for profiting from the pandemic after reliance on taxpayers’ support to develop and distribute the vaccine. He has labeled Moderna the “poster child” for pharmaceutical industry greed. Moderna’s revenues have escalated from approximately $800 million in 2020 to $19 billion in 2021, resulting in a net income of $12.2 billion in 2021. As a result, Bancel has become a multi-billionaire; the firm’s stock price has surged from $20 at the onset of the pandemic to $150 today, with Bancel selling $408 million in Moderna shares between March 2020 and March 2022.

As of now, it’s not evident whether Moderna and the DOJ will challenge this latest ruling. Moderna refused to comment, and a DOJ spokesperson stated that the agency had nothing additional to contribute.