Modern Inc.
MRNA 2.68%
said Tuesday it will offer its new Covid-19 vaccine to its own employees, contractors and board members in a move that the company said would provide an extra layer of protection for workers involved in the vaccine making and delivery.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts company, which has approximately 1,200 employees, said the small amounts of vaccine needed for the program are separate from the millions of doses Moderna has pledged to the US government.
Moderna has said it expects about 20 million doses for use in the US by the end of this month, and a total of about 200 million by mid-2021. The federal government has purchased the doses and is monitoring their distribution.
Immunizations with Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine began earlier this month. WSJ’s Betsy McKay reports on how injections are distributed. Photo: Paul Sancya / Agence France-Presse / Getty Images
The company’s new policy appears to allow the vaccination of some people who do not belong to the high-priority groups identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC has said that the first people to receive the limited initial supply of available vaccine doses are health professionals and residents of long-term care facilities, followed later by people 75 and older and certain key workers such as police officers and factory workers.
The CDC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A Moderna spokesman said the policy would help ensure “ongoing operations and vaccine production in the face of a pandemic.” He said that because of the size of Moderna, “we have critical personnel in all parts of our organization to respond to the pandemic.”
Pfizer Inc.,
which had about 88,000 employees worldwide since February, takes a different approach with the vaccine it produces with partner BioNTech SE.
It plans to vaccinate employees as soon as they become eligible under the CDC guidelines, with the first group expected to be the company’s key employees, including those in manufacturing positions, a company spokeswoman said. The company has “no plans to prioritize the vaccination of our executives or board members over other at-risk groups,” said the spokeswoman.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Moderna’s vaccine in adult emergencies this month after a large study found it to be highly effective against Covid-19 disease. Millions of doses have been distributed across locations in the US so far. Last week, federal health officials including Dr. Anthony Fauci, the first dose of the Moderna vaccine.
The company said under its new policy it would also vaccinate adult members of its employees’ households to reduce the risk of absenteeism and disruption from a family member’s Covid-19 infection. The company makes vaccinations voluntary and confidential and covers costs.
Moderna said it notified appropriate health authorities of the program and will monitor and report information about the vaccinations as required under FDA approval.
Moderna officials have previously said they have taken steps to reduce the risk of the virus to employees, including requiring personal protective equipment for those required to work in the facilities, and letting some employees work from home.
—Jared S. Hopkins contributed to this article.
Write to Peter Loftus at [email protected]
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