Johnson & Johnson Receives Vaccine-Manufacturing Deal From U.S.

By Matt Grossman

Johnson & Johnson has agreed to manufacture and deliver 100 million doses of its under-development Covid-19 vaccine for the U.S. government, pending approval of the vaccine by the Food and Drug Administration.

The federal government's vaccine-development effort committed more than $1 billion in the deal, Johnson & Johnson said. The government will have the option of buying an additional 200 million doses, according to the company.

Johnson & Johnson is developing the vaccine through its Janssen Pharmaceutical Cos. arm. Last week, Johnson & Johnson said that a pre-clinical study in primates showed that the vaccine provided complete or near-complete protection to the animals' lungs from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes Covid-19.

A clinical Phase 1/2a study of the vaccine's potential in human subjects began last month, Johnson & Johnson said. The company is evaluating both one-dose and two-dose vaccination regimes, it said.

Johnson & Johnson said it plans to supply more than 1 billion doses of the vaccine through 2021 if it is shown to be safe and effective.

Write to Matt Grossman at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 05, 2020 09:06 ET (13:06 GMT)

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