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Pfizer Reaps Hundreds of Millions in Profits From COVID Vaccine

The New York Times reported:

Last year, racing to develop a vaccine in record time, Pfizer made a big decision: Unlike several rival manufacturers, which vowed to forgo profits on their shots during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pfizer planned to profit on its vaccine.

On Tuesday, the company announced just how much money the shot is generating.

The vaccine brought in $3.5 billion in revenue in the first three months of this year, nearly a quarter of its total revenue, Pfizer reported. The vaccine was, far and away, Pfizer’s biggest source of revenue.

The company did not disclose the profits it derived from the vaccine, but it reiterated its previous prediction that its profit margins on the vaccine would be in the high 20 percent range. That would translate into roughly $900 million in pretax vaccine profits in the first quarter.

35-Year-Old Woman Dies of Brain Hemorrhage 11 Days After Receiving J&J Vaccine

The Defender reported:

The family of a Michigan woman says she died as the result of complications 11 days after receiving the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID vaccine.

Anne VanGeest, 35, died April 19 at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s hospital in Grand Rapids from an acute subarachnoid brain hemorrhage, FOX 17 reported.

FDA Set to Authorize Pfizer Vaccine for Adolescents, But Some Experts Question Need, Ethics

The Defender reported:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is preparing to authorize use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID vaccine in adolescents 12 to 15 years old by early next week, according to federal officials familiar with the agency’s plans. The vaccine is currently authorized in the U.S for emergency use in people 16 and older.

The decision, which is likely to be supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), would allow most middle and high school students to get vaccinated before summer camps and the start of the 2021-22 school year, USA TODAY reported.

The FDA will have to amend the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Pfizer’s vaccine, but the process should be straightforward, said a federal official who was not authorized to speak about the process publicly and requested anonymity.

Tucker Carlson: Americans Shouldn’t Be Forced to Take One-Size-Fits-All Vaccine

The Defender reported:

In the segment below on last night’s “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Fox News commentator Tucker Carlson said, “there are unresolved concerns” about the long-term health effects of COVID vaccines, including on female fertility and pregnant women.

The American people should not be forced to take a one-size-fits-all medical treatment, Carlson explained. “No medicine is designed for every person in all circumstances,” he said.

Last month, the Biden administration said the federal government will not require all Americans to get the COVID vaccine, nor will it require vaccination passports. But the truth is, when it comes to COVID vaccines, President Biden is not pro-choice, he’s pro-mandate, Carlson said.

New Zealand Fires Nine Border Workers Who Refused COVID Vaccine

The Guardian reported:

New Zealand’s customs agency has fired nine border workers who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The country has required all frontline border workers to be vaccinated by the end of April.

In February, the prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, said the government would not be making the vaccine compulsory for frontline staff, and that those who declined the vaccine would be moved into backroom roles.

But no other work could be found to redeploy the nine workers who were in fixed term employment at the maritime border, Jacinda Funnell, Customs’ deputy chief executive for people and capability, said.

Slowing Vaccine Demand Exposes Stark Divides

Politico reported:

“The ground game really matters now,” a senior administration official said. “We don’t have to do these major FEMA sites.”

Where it’s happening: There are stark divides between and even within states. Michigan and Colorado lead the country in most cases per capita, while Oregon is struggling with surges in certain low-vaccinated counties. These inequities could mean that in some communities, businesses and schools can broadly reopen, while in others just a few counties over, the coronavirus continues to rage, Dan and Adam write.

U.S. focus pivots from supply to demand. Fewer than 1.1 million Americans are receiving their first vaccine dose each day, the lowest average since the end of February, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As recently as three weeks ago, nearly 2 million Americans were getting their first dose each day.

There’s Not Just One Kind of Vaccine Hesitancy

Axios reported:

… In the real world, about 56% of U.S. adults had received at least one shot as of Saturday, per the CDC, suggesting that we’re getting very close to the end of the “vaccine eager” population.

What they’re saying: “As those Americans most eager to get the vaccine have now been able to do so, the hard part of earning the trust of those with hesitations or who don’t view it as a top priority begins,” said John Gerzema, CEO of The Harris Poll.

Between the lines: Young adults are most likely to say they’ll get the vaccine whenever they get around to it, or want to wait and see before getting it.

Glass Half-Full? Embattled Astrazeneca CEO Soriot Defends COVID-19 Vaccine

FiercePharma reported:

As the weeks turn to months on AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine filing in the U.S., the big question is when. Its answer remains the same: soon.

But the next biggest question is, why bother?

With U.S. vaccine coffers now overflowing with Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson shots, why is AstraZeneca still planning to file for emergency authorization here?

When asked by reporters Friday if there’s a chance AstraZeneca wouldn’t submit its vaccine for FDA consideration because it may not be needed in the U.S., CEO Pascal Soriot and other executives repeated the pharma’s assertion it plans file with the FDA “in the coming weeks.”