Shafaq news/ Pfizer, BioNTech said that The U.S. government will pay $ 1.95 billion to purchase 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from them if they manage to develop one.

The contract is the most the United States has agreed to spend on a vaccine to date, but previous agreements signed by the government have helped pay for development costs for drug makers. Pfizer and BioNTech will not receive any money from the government unless their vaccine is found to be safe and effective and successfully manufactured, according to a spokesperson for Pfizer.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said that the deal allows the US government to acquire an additional 500 million doses, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Defense said.

In clinical trials, Pfizer and BioNTech have tested vaccines that require two injections. This means that a supply of 100 million doses would likely immunize 50 million Americans.

Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine candidate is among those that should be tested in a large trial. The vaccine has shown promise in small, early-stage studies in humans.

Pfizer will deliver the doses if the product receives emergency use authorization or a license from the United States Food and Drug Administration, after demonstrating safety and efficacy in a large phase 3 clinical trial.

The companies said they expected to be ready to seek some form of regulatory approval as early as October if ongoing studies are successful.

Pfizer and BioNTech currently plan to manufacture up to 100 million doses worldwide by the end of 2020, and potentially more than 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021, subject to final selection of dose from their clinical trial.

The companies agreed to supply the UK with 30 million doses of the candidate vaccine on Monday, but did not disclose a price.

Shares of Pfizer rose 2.8%, while US-listed shares of BioNTech rose nearly 9% at the start of trading.