Biotech firm Moderna recently announced that it would never enforce the patent on its COVID-19 vaccine in 92 countries currently receiving the shots through a global program. It’s the first major pharmaceutical company to announce such a move, which critics say came later than it should have and which opens the door to wide-scale global production. Under CEO Stéphane Bancel, Moderna is also developing mRNA vaccines targeting 15 pathogens that are more common in the developing world, as well as longtime public-health threats such as influenza and RSV.
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