White House Announces $2.7 Billion to Boost Vaccine Production

(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government will allocate $2.7 billion to expand vaccine manufacturing, though it’s not yet clear which companies will receive the funds, President Joe Biden’s Covid response team announced Thursday. 

The money will be used to increase production of ingredients and supplies used to make vaccines. It will support the manufacturing of raw materials, vials and syringes, as well as the bottling process known as fill-finish, according to an official familiar with the plan.

The investment will “help us deliver on the president’s commitment to be an arsenal of vaccines for the world, and strengthen our long-term capabilities to respond to future threats,” White House Covid response coordinator Jeff Zients said at a briefing Thursday.

Contracting will begin over the next several weeks, Zients said. 

Zients said the U.S. has now donated 130 million doses to other nations. Biden has pledged to donate more than 600 million doses by mid-2022.

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