The Trump administration has canceled a $766 million contract with drugmaker Moderna Inc. to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu.
The company was notified on Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and January to fund the development and purchase of its investigational vaccine.
The funds were distributed by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, a program that focuses on medical treatments for potential pandemics.
The new vaccine, known as mRNA-1018, was created using the same technology that enabled the rapid development and deployment of vaccines to combat Covid.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has expressed strong reservations about mRNA vaccines, despite real-world evidence that they are safe and have saved millions of lives.
The cancellation came as Moderna announced positive interim results from an early-stage trial of a vaccine targeting the H5 bird flu virus, which was tested on 300 healthy adults.
“While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile observed in this interim analysis,” according to a statement from the business.
H5N1 bird flu viruses spread from wild birds to cattle in the United States last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. Bird flu infections have sickened at least 70 people in the United States, with the majority of cases being mild.
One person has died. Scientists are concerned that the virus’s continued mutation will allow it to become more virulent or spread more easily in humans, potentially triggering a pandemic.
Moderna received $176 million in July 2024, and $590 million in January. The January award would have funded a late-stage clinical trial to determine the vaccine’s efficacy against pandemic viruses such as bird flu, according to a company spokesman.
