💰How Much Will A Vaccine Cost?

A recent Pew poll is startling:

If an effective COVID-19 vaccine were made available today only 54% of Black adults and 74% of white adults would be willing to take it. The stats presumably reflect a long-held distrust among Black Americans towards government and the health care industry, and a similar though less substantial distrust amongst white Americans.

And then there’s the cost of vaccination … which I discussed with Merith Basey on the UnfairNation podcast last month.

Diving (a little) deeper

Some COVID-19 drugs already cost over $3,000

That’s what Gilead Sciences will charge for Remdesivir - currently the best hope for a remedial COVID-19 treatment in the absence of a vaccine. Drug prices vary more than almost any other product on the market and are negotiable depending on who buys the drug, who the patient is and whether the drug is procured through private insurance or covered by government plans such as Medicare.

It’s like buying a car. Except your life is at stake.

Gilead is…