Contract Confirms US Government Received $400 Million From Major COVID-19 Vaccine Manufacturer

The Epoch Times Header

The U.S. government has released the licensing agreement it hammered out with vaccine manufacturer Moderna but has refused to confirm many payment details.

Moderna agreed to pay the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) to license spike protein technology the company included in its COVID-19 vaccine, the contract confirms.

Moderna resisted for years acknowledging the work by government researchers on the spike protein but relented in late 2021 and announced the contract during an earnings call on Feb. 23.

Moderna said it provided a “catch-up payment” of $400 million to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is part of the NIH, under the agreement.

The newly disclosed contract says that Moderna would pay the NIH a “noncreditable, nonrefundable royalty in the amount of Four Hundred Million dollars.”

Portions that would confirm Moderna’s statement that the company would pay “low single digit royalties” on future sales of its COVID-19 vaccines are redacted.

The contract, running 34 pages, has key sections redacted as to future royalties.

One section, for instance, says, “The licensee agrees to pay to the NIAID earned royalties on net sales … as follows.” But the rest of the section is redacted.

The Epoch Times obtained the contract through the Freedom of Information Act.

The NIH cited for the redactions an exemption to the act that enables agencies to withhold “trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential.”

“They redacted the royalties, even though there have been press releases about the royalties,” James Love, director of the nonprofit Knowledge Ecology International, told The Epoch Times via email. “It’s common but [expletive] to redact royalties on a negotiated license on a government patent.”

Unredacted information in the contract confirmed that Moderna had agreed to pay the NIH royalties before the agreement took effect in late 2022: a “minimum annual royalty,” “earned royalties,” and “benchmark royalties.”

By Zachary Stieber

Read Full Article on TheEpochTimes.com

The Epoch Times
The Epoch Timeshttps://www.theepochtimes.com/
Tired of biased news? The Epoch Times is truthful, factual news that other media outlets don't report. No spin. No agenda. Just honest journalism like it used to be.

Columns

I Refuse To Be A Serf

“How are people not furious about property taxes?” President Trump...

Putting it to rest

As the nation hits its taxation stride on its way to April 15th and DOGE continues to reveal waste and fraud, a review of the nation’s finances is overdue.

Lefty Activist Judges are Obstructing Trump’s Presidency

Activist judge’s ruling to block President Donald Trump from being able to execute his Constitutional Article 2 Powers pose a real “Constitutional crisis”.

France’s Next Quarterly Nuclear Drills Might Become Prestige-Building Exercises With Poland

Europe wonders what form Macron’s plans to extend his nuclear umbrella over the continent could take, considering risks entailed after Moscow’s negative reaction.

RFK Jr. Nukes HHS ‘Research’ Grants Designed to Stamp Out ‘Vaccine Hesitancy’

RFK Jr. must be waiting to get data firmly on his side before yanking COVID shots off the market and delivering pharmaceutical criminals to the DOJ.

News

US to Pay El Salvador $6 Million to Imprison 300 Illegal Immigrant Gang Members for a Year

Trump admin is set to pay El Salvador $6 million to hold 300 members of Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang and 2 alleged members of MS-13 in prison for a year.

DOJ Investigates Columbia University for Potential Terrorism Offenses

A separate Homeland Security probe is looking into whether...

Voice of America Cuts Contracts With AP, Reuters, and AFP

Voice of America, under leadership appointed by Trump, is terminating contracts with The Associated Press, Reuters, and Agence France-Presse.

Retirees Must Make Obligated Withdrawals From IRAs, 401(k) Accounts by April 1: IRS

IRS issued alert reminding retirees that some of them are obligated to withdraw money from their retirement accounts by beginning of next month.

Johns Hopkins University Laying Off Over 2,000 Workers After Federal Funding Cut

Johns Hopkins University will lay off over 2,000 workers worldwide following Trump admin’s termination of $800 million in federal funding for institution.

American Airlines Plane Catches Fire at Denver Airport, Forces Evacuation

Passengers were forced to evacuate from an American Airlines plane that caught fire on March 13 at Denver International Airport.

Columbia University Expels Some Students Involved in 2024 Hamilton Hall Takeover

Columbia University said its judicial board levied a range of sanctions against students who occupied the building while protesting the Israel-Hamas war.
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

MAGA Business Central