Robert ReichModerna is planning to charge $130 for its COVID vaccine, but the vaccine only costs $2.85 to make.
Meanwhile, over the last two years, the company made over $19 billion in profits off the vaccine.
Folks, this is what corporate greed looks like.
littlebigfred@rbreich "but the vaccine only costs $2.85 to make."
But they spent a bit of money on R&D to come up with the vaccine.
It takes a second to cut with a scalpel, but twelve years to become a surgeon
Roy Brander🍁Reich didn't say they made $19B gross; he said they made $19B *profit* ... that's after you subtract the development cost.
The pure research cost was donated to Moderna by the government, in effect.
Murray 🇪🇺 
@RoyBrander
Is $19B the profit from worldwide sales? If so, how many people worldwide have been vaccinated using Spikevax? There are 8Bn people on the planet. If just 1Bn have received at least 2 shots that would give you a profit of $9.5 per person vaccinated. More people having more than 2 courses would reduce that still further.
Whether profit should be made on medicine is another argument altogether.
@littlebigfred @rbreich
Is $19B the profit from worldwide sales? If so, how many people worldwide have been vaccinated using Spikevax? There are 8Bn people on the planet. If just 1Bn have received at least 2 shots that would give you a profit of $9.5 per person vaccinated. More people having more than 2 courses would reduce that still further.
Whether profit should be made on medicine is another argument altogether.
@littlebigfred @rbreich