Moderna announced Wednesday that it will keep its COVID-19 vaccine on the market at no cost to consumers.
“Everyone in the United States will have access to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine regardless of their ability to pay,” the company said in a statement.
The federal government recently announced it will soon stop paying for the vaccine. The vaccine has been paid for by the government – for the insured and uninsured – since it became available in December 2020.
Moderna was criticized last month for saying it was considering a price hike for the COVID-19 shots.
The US government paid around $2.5 billion to help Moderna develop the vaccine. As of Feb. 2, 250,310,595 doses of Moderna’s vaccines have been administered.
Moderna will be offering its shot for free to the uninsured, while, under federal regulation, insurance companies are required to pay the bill for COVID vaccines.