WASHINGTON — Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel attempted on Wednesday to win over lawmakers irate about the company’s planned COVID-19 vaccine price increase, weathering a barrage of criticism from Democrats angry at the company’s profits from its groundbreaking mRNA vaccine.
In a voluntary appearance before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and its firebrand chairman, Vermont independent Bernie Sanders, Bancel defended the company, whose vaccine sped to market in record time, helped end worldwide shutdowns and turned Moderna’s top executives into billionaires.
Moderna plans to hike the price of its COVID-19 shot from $26 to between $110 and $130 as vaccine purchases transition from the federal government to commercial payers. Bancel said the company was also in discussions over prices for Medicare, Medicaid and other government payers.
