OAN’s James Meyers
10:19 AM – Tuesday, July 2, 2024
The U.S. government will pay vaccine maker Moderna $176 million to increase the development of a pandemic influenza vaccine that could be used to treat bird flu in people, federal officials announced on Tuesday.
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The U.S. has documented three cases so far in humans this year. All three cases had regular contact with dairy cows. As of July, more than 130 herds across 12 states have seen infected cows.
Meanwhile, Moderna already has a bird flu vaccine in early-stage testing that uses the same mRNA technology that allowed accelerated development of COVID-19 vaccines. The newly allotted funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) include continued development of the vaccine. It is set to start a late-stage trial in 2025 if the early study results are positive.
However, the project can be quickly changed to a different direction to target another form of influenza if a different threat other than the H5N1 form of bird flu comes to light, HHS officials stated.
The award was made through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), which is a program that focuses on medical treatments for potential pandemics.
Additionally, other methods to contain bird flu may be used, particularly if more farm workers get sick. The options could include widespread use of antivirals to fight the virus.
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