Is the world “pandemic turning into endemic?” While seeking answers to the questions, positive messages came from Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, which developed the first Corona virus vaccine with the German BioNTech company. Bourla said that the Omicron variant will be the “last active variant” of the Corona virus, and that the return to normal life is close. The manager of the American pharmaceutical giant reported that they are working to switch to a single-dose vaccine next year, and that they have “recorded a significant 89 percent reduction in the risk of hospitalization and death” with the antiviral pill Paxlovid they produced against Covid.
Albert Bourla, who was connected to the French BFM TV channel from New York and gave a comprehensive interview to the newspaper Le Figaro, predicted that the Omicron variant would be “the last wave” where effective measures are now taken. I don’t want to be pessimistic, but we will probably have to live for years with a virus that is very difficult to eradicate. The virus has spread all over the world, can infect the same person multiple times, and has mutated enough to allow us to rediscover the Greek alphabet. The question is not whether this virus will disappear or not. The real question is, will we be able to return to normal life? I believe in this. We will soon be able to return to a normal life. With all the tools at our disposal, we are in a good position to achieve this this spring: testing and effective vaccines have protected people against the risk of hospitalization and death. Now comes the first treatments we can get at home. The Paxlovid drug will arrive in French pharmacies at the end of January. This drug, which is prescribed to people at risk with a positive diagnosis, will break the rules for our health systems by eliminating the backlog in hospitals.”
Greek-American executive Albert Bourla, “Is a 4th dose necessary?” While evaluating the discussions, he stated that the possibility of a “single dose vaccine” was strengthened. “Until Omicron, a three-dose and annual vaccination schedule was correct. This variant made everything questionable. Will it be more frequent boosters or a new vaccine adapted to Omicron? “It’s too early to know if we’ll need it. We’re testing several scenarios, including a vaccine targeting Omicron and other variants. We don’t have enough data yet. But I’ve always said it. Three doses of vaccine are important to complete vaccines. One dose per year will suffice.” “Only those with immune system problems will continue with three doses. We do not have the test results on the effects of the fourth dose yet. We will have the new vaccine and test results in March,” he said.
Expressing that the ambassador RNA technology is a “very powerful and very new” method, Bourla emphasized that they are working on a new flu vaccine with this technology, and that ambassador RNA is “ideal” for flu and Covid. Albert Bourla also said that if the Paxlovid pill produced by Pfizer was taken for three days immediately after the onset of Covid symptoms, “they recorded a significant 89 percent reduction in the risk of hospitalization and death.”
Pfizer CEO, “Our Paxlovid treatment changes everything in the fight against the virus: We also have new news. Paxlovid will be produced in France. We will invest 520 million euros in France in 5 years. Most of this investment will be made with Novacep company in Mourenx, France, of this drug. It will be allocated to a partnership to produce its active ingredient for the whole world.”
We earned $36 billion
Pfizer’s Boss also announced to the public that they produced 3 billion doses of vaccine at the end of 2021, sent 2.6 billion doses of vaccines to the whole world, 40% of which were developing countries, and that they had “earned 36 billion dollars” in 2022. shared with.
Albert Bourla, who has been the CEO of Pfizer since January 2019, explained what steps the company has taken in the fight against Covid. We focused on innovation. I increased the R&D budget from $7 billion to $11 billion a year and increased our investment in digital. Without digital, it would have been impossible to conduct clinical trials for our vaccine so quickly and develop Paxlovid. We tested 600 molecules using the power of computing and algorithms “With Covid, Pfizer is taking on a huge responsibility. When you play such a role in an epidemic, people expect you to be equally good at other diseases.”
Albert Bourla, about his personal experience in the last two years, said, “Like everyone else, I suffered from isolation. I found solace in the time I spent with my family. My children have undoubtedly spent a long time with their parents. There was a lot of pressure on Pfizer to develop a vaccine very quickly. To relax, I spent time watching TV series and chatting with my children.