Biden Admin to Spend $11 Million on Monkeypox Vaccine Production
The Biden administration announced on Monday it will provide about $11 million to support the production of the Jynneos smallpox vaccine that is being used against monkeypox in the ongoing outbreak.
The funds will support the manufacturing of the vaccines at Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing (GRAM) in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.
The vaccines are made by Denmark-based biotech group Bavarian Nordic.
The announcement comes after Bavarian Nordic and GRAM previously announced on Aug. 18 that they agreed to establish the first U.S.-based fill-and-finish capability for the Jynneos vaccine. The term “fill-and-finish” refers to filling the syringes, and labeling, packaging, and inspecting the vaccines.
The agreement was facilitated by the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). BARDA in July placed orders to fill, finish, and deliver 5 million vials of Jynneos from U.S. government-owned bulk vaccine stored in Denmark, the HHS noted.
“In that contract, Bavarian Nordic agreed to complete a technology transfer that would allow a U.S.-based contract manufacturer to fill and finish 2.5 million vials of JYNNEOS,” the department said.
According to the HHS, the $11 million funding will allow GRAM to “purchase additional equipment necessary for JYNNEOS production and recruit and train additional staff to operate the line.”
“With BARDA’s support, vaccine production at the facility is expected to be underway later this year, months ahead of the 9-month schedule typical for this type of work.”
Bob Fenton, the White House monkeypox response coordinator, said on Aug. 26 that the deal is “an important step in building our domestic capacity and in providing domestic jobs.”
HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said the agreement “solidifies a domestic manufacturing capability that will bring us more vaccine sooner to end this outbreak.”
Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said in a White House briefing on Aug. 26 that
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