The Donald Trump administration has cancelled USD 766 million awarded to drugmaker Moderna Inc to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu.
The company said it was notified Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and in January to pay for development and purchase of its investigational vaccine.
The funds were awarded through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, a programme that focuses on medical treatments for potential pandemics.
The new vaccine, called mRNA-1018, used the same technology that allowed development and rollout of vaccines to fight Covid-19 in record time.
Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has expressed deep skepticism regarding the safety of mRNA vaccines.
The cancellation came as Moderna announced positive interim results from an early-stage trial of the vaccine that targeted H5 bird flu virus, tested in 300 healthy adults.
“While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile observed in this interim analysis,” the company said in a statement.
H5N1 bird flu viruses spilled from wild bird into cattle in the US last year, infecting hundreds in several states.
At least 70 people in the US have been sickened by bird flu infections, mostly mild. One person died.
Scientists fear that continued mutation of the virus could allow it to become more virulent or spread more easily in people, with the possibility that it could trigger a pandemic.
Moderna received USD 176 million in July 2024 and USD 590 million in January.
The January award would have supported a late-stage clinical trial that could have determined the vaccine’s efficacy against pandemic viruses, including bird flu, a company spokesman said. CNBCTV18