|
WASHINGTON (AP) - The federal government will purchase 20 million doses of a smallpox vaccine that, in the event of an outbreak, would be used to treat people with compromised immune systems.
The five-year contract with Bavarian Nordic, a Danish pharmaceutical company, is valued at more than $500 million. The contract contains options that could extend its value to $1.6 billion, the company and the Health and Human Services Department announced on Monday.
The smallpox vaccine is a completely new product that will be added to the Strategic National Stockpile. The current stockpile contains enough smallpox vaccine for every American. However, that vaccine was produced using a live, replicating virus, which can be potentially life-threating in rare instances. Patients, such as those getting chemotherapy, should not get such vaccines in non-emergency cases.
|
|