The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday confirmed that the average per-dose purchase price of the Taiwan-developed Medigen COVID-19 vaccine was NT$840 (US$26), adding that it was cheaper than two other brands.
Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp yesterday said it revealed the contract price for its vaccine to dispel rumors, which it said were causing social conflict.
Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝), who heads the CECC, said Medigen informed the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that it would reveal the price and agreed to allow the center to further explain the disclosed information.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The total cost for 5 million doses of the vaccine was NT$4.03 billion, including 200,000 doses donated to the CDC for its help funding the vaccine’s development, Medigen said in a statement.
The company said it provided two types of the vaccine, including 2 million single-dose prefilled syringes, which cost NT$881 per dose; 2.8 million doses in multi-dose vials, which cost NT$810 per dose; and 200,000 doses donated in multi-dose vials.
Using the 4.8 million doses to calculate the average price of each dose, the average contract price was about NT$840 per dose, it said.
Medigen said that the figures in a financial statement showed there was no price difference from the contract nor were there commission fees.
Its net sales of NT$3.62 billion in the financial statement was calculated from the total contract price of NT$4.03 billion, subtracting taxes and “penalties for delayed delivery of partial batches,” it said, adding that the contract was signed directly with the CDC.
Wang said the prices and the numbers of doses revealed by Medigen were correct and based on the contract.
Although the CECC cannot reveal the purchase prices for the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, the average price for the Medigen vaccine was cheaper, he added.
Medigen on Friday submitted its vaccine efficacy report.
Wang said he asked the Food and Drug Administration to call a specialist meeting to review the report as soon as possible, the outcome of which would be publicized.
Medigen is offering free polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests to people who received its vaccine and are traveling to Japan, which does not recognize the vaccine and requires a negative pre-arrival PCR test for entry.
Wang said that 128 people had so far received a free PCR test from Medigen.
Yesterday, he received his second booster shot with the Medigen vaccine, he added.
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