BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union has struck a deal for up to 160 million doses of U.S. firm Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate, the head of the European Commission said on Tuesday, taking the EU’s potential stock of COVID-19 shots to nearly 2 billion.
Last week, Moderna said its experimental vaccine was 94.5% effective in preventing COVID-19, based on interim data from a late-stage clinical trial.
“I am happy to announce that tomorrow we will approve a new contract to secure another COVID-19 vaccine,” Ursula von der Leyen said, adding the deal “allows us to buy up to 160 million doses of a vaccine produced by Moderna.”
Actual purchases will be carried out by EU governments if the vaccine is approved by the EU’s drug regulator.
The delivery timeline is unknown. The doses would be enough to vaccinate 80 million people as the vaccine is expected to be administered in two doses.
