EU seals vaccine supply deal with Johnson & Johnson

BRUSSELS, October 8

The European Union has sealed a deal with Johnson & Johnson to supply up to 400 million doses of its potential COVID-19 vaccine, as the bloc builds up stocks amid a global scramble to secure shots. The deal announced on Thursday by the European Commission is its third advance purchase contract with makers of COVID-19 vaccines after deals with AstraZeneca and Sanofi , bringing the number of doses secured by the EU for its population of 450 million to 1.1 billion.

Under the terms of the deal, the 27 EU states will be able to order up to 400 million doses of the potential vaccine after it is authorised by the EU medicine regulator.

To secure the vaccines, the EU made an undisclosed downpayment to J&J, which confirmed the deal in a statement in which it reiterated plans to allocate up to 500 million additional doses to poorer countries from mid-2021. EU states would pay the full price only when they order it. The price and liability conditions are confidential.Reuters