--- title: "Pfizer’s Jacking Up the COVID Vaccine Cost to 10,000 Percent Its Production Cost" description: "In the next year, Pfizer plans to nearly quadruple the per-dose price of their COVID-19 vaccine, jacking costs from $20 to $30 per shot to $110 to $130." date: "2022-10-24" modified: "2022-10-24" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/pfizer-jacking-up-price-covid-vaccine" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "covid-19" - "Pandemic" - "pfizer" - "vaccine" --- # Pfizer’s Jacking Up the COVID Vaccine Cost to 10,000 Percent Its Production Cost ![In the next year, Pfizer plans to nearly quadruple the per-dose price of their COVID-19 vaccine, jacking costs from $20 to $30 per shot to $110 to $130.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* We're not surprised, just really disappointed. *Reuters* [reports]() that next year, pharma giant Pfizer plans to nearly quadruple the per-dose price of their COVID-19 vaccine, jacking costs from $20 to $30 per shot to $110 to $130. Particularly striking: Experts, per *Reuters*, estimate that at that price, the vaccine cost *10,000 times* what it costs Pfizer to actually make it. The People’s Vaccine Alliance, an international group committed to ensuring vaccine access, has reportedly condemned the price hike as "daylight robbery." Of course, for Pfizer, the price hike would be an [incredibly lucrative move](). Like other American drug companies, Pfizer, first and foremost, is a business. As the once-overwhelming demand for COVID vaccinations continues to wane, this is a way for Pfizer to hold onto previous vaccine revenue and then some — Wells Fargo analyst Mohit Bansal told *Reuters* that the proposed hike would probably rake in between $2.5 and $3 billion. So, uh, good news for Pfizer. But bad news for those who, you know, need to be vaccinated, want others to be vaccinated, or need vaccines to be affordable. And sadly for that latter group, experts are unfortunately expecting other vaccine providers to follow suit. "We expect Moderna to adapt to this signal," SVB Securities analyst David Risinger said in a research note, according to *Reuters.* He reportedly added that he expects Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and Novavax to all "\[price\] in a similar range for the foreseeable future." Moderna declined *Reuter's* request for comment, but has [previously suggested]() putting its commercial pricing somewhere around $64 to $100 per shot. It's worth noting that compared to the average annual cost of flu shots, Pfizer's proposed vaccine prices are far from normal. As *Reuters* points out, the US government pays between $20 and $30 for standard flu doses, and *maybe* up to $70 for the highest-dose shots. And on that note, it's infuriating to consider where else the government billions that will likely soon be pocketed by Pfizer could go instead. Are Pfizer's proposed prices sociopathic? Upsetting? Mind-blowing? Sure. But for better or, in this case, almost certainly for worse, this is American healthcare, and it looks like vaccine makers might be fresh out of pandemic good will. **More on Pfizer's dollar sign eyes:** *[Pharma Execs Scheming about How to Make More Money off COVID Vaccine]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()