Israel and Moderna Sign Agreement for 6 Million Doses of Vaccine

Moderna and Israel have entered into a new contractual agreement to increase the amount of coronavirus vaccine candidates being supplied to the country.

The amount being provided earlier will be exactly tripled. From 2 million doses to now 6 million, the Jewish state will receive all of them in the year 2021. The increased number of doses is hoped to be enough to vaccinate the 3 million citizens of the country. 

At the beginning of the week, Moderna gave an application for the US and European emergency authorization for its Covid-19 vaccine candidate. They went ahead and applied for authorization after the late-stage study of their candidate showed a 94.1% effectiveness. No serious and severe safety concerns were observed. Moreover, the company reported that it had been 100% successful in preventing severe cases. 

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, gave a statement via a video on Friday. He said that he was quite happy to announce that the country had signed a new agreement with Moderna to receive six million doses of their vaccine. He stated that this was done only to accommodate the citizens of Israel. 

He informed that the new agreement includes three times the doses that the original contract identified. Netanyahu urged people to continue following the coronavirus guidelines. But, he added that the arrival of vaccines is a sign of hope and the light at the end of the tunnel that everyone has been waiting for. 

In his statement, the Prime Minister went on to add that it is the responsibility and mission of the government to bring vaccines into the country. However, he pointed out that it is the job of the public to follow the rules. He assured the country that together they will win if everyone sticks to doing what they are supposed to. Netanyahu went on to motivate the people regarding beating the virus together. 

Yuli Edelstein, the Health Minister, also talked about the revised contract. He stated that it is great news for the economy of Israel and the citizens alike. According to him, there will be no citizen in the country who wants to get vaccinated but, does not have any available. 

The previous contract that the Jewish state had with Moderna was worth a total of NIS 240 million. This meant that each dose of the vaccine candidate was going to cost $12 or $24 since each person requires two doses for a complete vaccination. 

The first doses of Moderna’s vaccine candidate are expected to arrive in Israel at the beginning of the year 2021. The Israeli-born chief medical officer of Moderna, Tal Zaks, said that the country will be amongst the first to receive their vaccine. 

Israel was one of those countries that stepped forward to sign the contract for the vaccine back in the month of June. Zaks soon gained popularity and was regularly showcased on the 8 pm news. He was also named to be on the list of 50 most influential Jews of the year 2020.