Latest news with #ModernaInc
Los Angeles Times
2 days ago
- Health
- Los Angeles Times
Trump administration cancels $766 million Moderna contract to fight pandemic flu
The Trump administration has canceled $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 The company said it was notified Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and in January to pay for development and purchase of its investigational vaccine.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 program 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 mRNA vaccines, despite real-world evidence that the vaccines are safe and saved millions of lives. The cancelation 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 U.S. last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. At least 70 people in the U.S. 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 more easily spread in people, with the possibility that it could trigger a pandemic. Moderna received $176 million in July 2024 and $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.
CNBC
2 days ago
- Health
- CNBC
Trump administration cancels $766 million Moderna contract to fight pandemic flu
The Trump administration has canceled $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 The company said it was notified Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and in January to pay for development and purchase of its investigational vaccine.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 program 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 mRNA vaccines, despite real-world evidence that the vaccines are safe and saved millions of lives. The cancelation 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 U.S. last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. At least 70 people in the U.S. 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 more easily spread in people, with the possibility that it could trigger a pandemic. Moderna received $176 million in July 2024 and $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.
NBC News
2 days ago
- Health
- NBC News
Trump administration cancels $766 million Moderna contract to fight future pandemics including bird flu
The Trump administration has canceled $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 program 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 mRNA vaccines, despite real-world evidence that the vaccines are safe and saved millions of lives. The cancelation 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 U.S. last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. At least 70 people in the U.S. 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 more easily spread in people, with the possibility that it could trigger a pandemic. Moderna received $176 million in July 2024 and $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.
India Today
2 days ago
- Health
- India Today
US cancels $766 million pandemic flu vaccine support to Moderna
The Trump administration has withdrawn $766 million in funding previously allocated to Moderna Inc. for the development of a vaccine against potential pandemic flu, including bird H5N1 highly pathogenic H5N1 virus has caused widespread destruction in several countries, resulting in the loss of millions of animals. In the US, the virus claimed its first human life in January 2025, following exposure to infected announced on Wednesday that the US Department of Health and Human Services had rescinded the funds, which were awarded in July 2024 and again in January 2025, to support the development and procurement of its experimental vaccine. The funding had been provided through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a program designed to support medical countermeasures for potential public health investigational vaccine, mRNA-1018, uses the same mRNA technology that enabled the rapid development and deployment of Covid-19 the setback, the company shared promising interim results from its early-stage clinical trial that targeted H5 bird flu virus involving 300 healthy adults. The vaccine showed a strong immune response and a favourable safety profile."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," Moderna said in a move comes amid growing skepticism within the administration toward mRNA vaccine platforms. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has publicly questioned their safety, despite extensive real-world data showing that mRNA vaccines are safe and have saved millions of lives, according to an Associated Press report. Despite the setback, the company shared promising interim results from its early-stage clinical trial involving 300 healthy adults. () Bird flu, which initially spread through wild birds, has now spilled over into cattle in the US, infecting hundreds of animals across at least 17 states. As of May 28, more than 173 million poultry have been affected. At least 70 human infections have been reported, mostly mild, with one death so remain concerned that continued viral mutations could make H5N1 more dangerous or capable of human-to-human transmission, raising fears of a future had received $176 million in July 2024 and $590 million in January 2025 to support vaccine development. The latter amount was intended to fund a large-scale trial that could have evaluated the vaccine's effectiveness against potential pandemic strains, including this year, a report in The Lancet by the Global Virus Network (GVN) urged governments to ramp up virus surveillance, improve farm biosecurity, and prepare for the possibility of human-to-human spread."H5N1 is no longer just a bird flu, it has already jumped to dairy cows and humans. The virus' ability to infect both animals and humans, combined with recent genetic changes, underscores the importance of proactive surveillance," said Dr. Sten Vermund, Chief Medical Officer of the current public health risk remains low, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring the agency is working with state health departments to track individuals exposed to infected animals and is using existing flu surveillance systems to monitor for signs of H5 infections in Reel
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Health
- Express Tribune
Moderna bird flu vaccine: US cancels over $700 million funding, prompting concerns
Listen to article The United States has cancelled over $700 million in funding allocated to Moderna Inc. for the late-stage development of its bird flu vaccine, citing concerns over scientific standards and safety. The decision, which halts a key project targeting the H5N1 avian influenza strain, marks a notable policy reversal in the nation's pandemic preparedness efforts. The contract, originally awarded under the Biden administration, included $590 million in January to expand Moderna's clinical trials and explore up to five new influenza subtypes. An additional $176 million had previously been committed by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in 2024 to complete development and testing of the mRNA-based vaccine. Today we announced an update on our investigational pandemic influenza program. Learn more: — Moderna (@moderna_tx) May 28, 2025 Moderna confirmed the cancellation on Wednesday, stating that it still intends to pursue alternative paths for advancing the vaccine's development and manufacturing. Shares of the company remained flat in after-hours trading. A spokesperson for HHS said a 'comprehensive internal review' had determined the Moderna project no longer met the federal agency's 'scientific standards or safety expectations' to justify continued public investment. The spokesperson did not provide further detail on the nature of the review's findings. The decision comes as the H5N1 strain continues to circulate globally, having infected at least 70 people in the past year—primarily farm workers—while also spreading through cattle herds and poultry flocks. Dr Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, criticised the cancellation, warning that the government was 'discarding what could be one of the most effective and rapid tools' to contain a potential outbreak. He contrasted the move with former President Donald Trump's Operation Warp Speed, which expedited COVID-19 vaccine development. BREAKING: HHS just killed a $600M Moderna contract for pandemic flu vaccines. The platform: mRNA—the fastest we have against threats like H5N1. The reason? RFK Jr.'s skepticism. The risk? Deadly delays when the next pandemic hits. — Carolyn Barber, MD (@cbarbermd) May 28, 2025 Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has also drawn criticism in recent months for his scepticism of vaccine deployment. In a controversial television appearance earlier this year, he suggested that poultry farmers should allow avian flu to spread unchecked to observe natural resistance in chickens. Despite the setback, Moderna reported encouraging interim results from an ongoing mid-stage trial evaluating the safety and immune response of its H5 vaccine candidate. The company has been relying on revenue from next-generation mRNA vaccines—including its bird flu and COVID-flu combination shots—as demand for its COVID-19 vaccine continues to decline. The cancellation reflects shifting priorities within the federal government and highlights growing scrutiny of pandemic-related funding decisions made during the previous administration.
