Governments Spent at Least €93bn on COVID-19 Vaccines and Therapeutics During the Last 11 Months

New figures from kENUP Foundation show extent of public investments in COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics 95% of funds in support of vaccines, with just 5% allocated to therapeutics Most funding was granted through a novel mechanism: 93% of all public funds were committed through advance market commitments (AMC), e.g. by Operation Warp Speed in the United States, or by the European Commission Geographically, 32% of public funds came from the United States, 24% from the EU and its Member States, and 13% from Japan and South Korea On the vaccine side, 71% of public funding went into products under development by SMEs and MidCaps, with only 18% deployed to large pharmaceutical manufacturers

According to analysis conducted by kENUP Foundation, the public sector has dedicated at least €93bn to COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics in 2020. More than 95%, about €88.3bn, was spent on vaccine companies. Only 5% of public COVID-19 funds were spent on therapeutics.

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New figures from kENUP Foundation show extent of public investments in COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics (Photo: stilistica.design)

Most of the funds, around €86.5bn, were used to conclude advance market commitments (AMCs). In return for the right to buy a specified number of vaccine doses in a given timeframe, governments finance part of the upfront costs faced by vaccines producers in the form of AMCs. Just 7% of funds were spent through preferred loans or conventional grants.

The data also shows the origin of the funding: 32% of funds directed towards vaccine producers come from the US, 24% from the EU, and a total of 13% from the governments of Japan and South Korea.

For vaccines, exceptionally, governments invested 71% or at least €63.1bn into Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and MidCaps. Only 18% of funds went to big pharma, underlining the importance of SMEs in driving innovation.

Holm Keller, Chairman of kENUP Foundation said: “Public investments have been instrumental in supporting innovation in the fight against the coronavirus. To bridge the time until broad rollout of vaccines, further investment in therapeutics is especially important. In parallel, a dedicated public pandemic preparedness scheme that would make vaccines and therapeutics readily available at lower development costs for any kind of pandemic pathogen is needed”.

The figures are kENUP’s analysis of publicly available information. They do not include private sector investments. The data was correct as at January 10, 2021.

About kENUP Foundation:

kENUP Foundation is a non-profit public benefit foundation supporting research-based innovation in health industries for societal benefit. kENUP initiates public and private investment into innovations with the potential to improve the livelihood of every citizen. The development of such innovations is often hampered by failing markets. Through its work, kENUP aims to change that.

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