Professor Greg Dore, a leading infectious diseases physician based at Sydney’s Kirby Institute said it was “absolutely” possible to complete the rollout by the end of the year as the Moderna deal gave the country more flexibility.
“It is great news,” he said. “This makes us less dependent on Novavax. But more important is the 2022 stuff – the 15 million booster doses.”
Several variants of the virus have already emerged with collections of mutations that appear to lower the effectiveness of the vaccines. Although the data is far from conclusive, AstraZeneca’s vaccine in particular appears to face major challenges from the South African variant.
Last week Moderna released a new study – not yet peer-reviewed – that suggests its vaccine can be adjusted to provide defence against the variants from Brazil and South Africa.
“Moderna are way ahead here,” said Dr Megan Steain, who is co-investigator on a study to develop a separate vaccine booster at the University of Sydney.
Moderna’s data comes from tests in a lab dish against artificial viruses designed to mimic the variants. That data was likely to translate to humans, said Professor Jamie Triccas, who is leading the project.
Federal Health Department secretary Professor Brendan Nelson said that the new Moderna doses could be given as boosters to people who had received Pfizer’s or AstraZeneca’s vaccine, extending their protection.
The federal government had long insisted it was not worth signing up with Moderna as the company would have struggled to deliver a meaningful amount of vaccine, given the US had locked in the vast majority of the company’s supply.
Opposition health spokesman Mark Butler questioned why it had taken so long to strike a deal with Moderna when other countries signed deals last year.
“Why do Australians have to wait till the end of this year? What happened to Scott Morrison’s promise that Australians would be at the front of the vaccine queue?” he said.
University of NSW economist Professor Richard Holden has been among the most vocal critics of not buying the Moderna vaccine earlier, arguing vaccines against a pandemic virus are worth essentially any price.
“I’m very pleased to see this happen. I wish this announcement had been made a year ago. But when the government makes a mistake, they get criticised for it. All we can ask then is they do the right thing going forward, rather than put their head in the sand,” he said.
Professor Holden was less certain the vaccine rollout could be completed by December 31. “It would be good if true but it will depend on the timing of arrivals of the vaccines,” he said.
Dr Elizabeth Jackson, a senior lecturer in supply chain management and logistics at Curtin University, said storage and supply chain issues could hamper the rollout but she was optimistic overall.
“If the rollout continues to go as it is now, yes, there is every likelihood that the government will achieve its target,” she said. “However, what we have seen from our experiences over the last several months, is that it doesn’t take much to get things wrong.”
Moderna confirmed on Wednesday (US time) that it intends to open a commercial subsidiary in Australia in 2021. Chief executive Stephane Bancel said the company was in discussions with Australia about “potential local manufacturing opportunities”.
Biotechnology industry insiders say there are two main options for Moderna to launch Australian manufacturing – the company could build its own facility from scratch or partner with a local manufacturer to either use its resources or take over an unused manufacturing site.
Blood plasma giant CSL has been more outspoken on its interest in mRNA technology this week, having been circumspect about its capacity to make the vaccines earlier in the pandemic.
“We are Australia’s only onshore vaccine manufacturer, with an existing workforce, facilities and expertise – and we are actively looking at ways to use this in the mRNA space,” a spokeswoman said yesterday.
The company confirmed it has been in early discussions with the government about the process of developing mRNA products onshore.
News of Moderna’s tilt into the Australian market has also piqued the interest of other local pharmaceuticals manufacturers, like ASX-listed IDT Australia.
″We are looking closely at mRNA manufacturing and if a collaboration with a company like Moderna made sense, we would absolutely be open to that,” said IDT chief executive Dr David Sparling.
IDT Price at posting:
31.0¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held
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