Taiwan’s local COVID-19 vaccine made by Medigen Vaccine Biologics is aiming to sell 100 millions doses overseas next year. That was according to a recent Bloomberg article about the vaccine.
It said Medigen President Charles Chen wants to sell to Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, where Taiwan has a good reputation for its medical services. Taiwan has 15 diplomatic allies, mostly in Latin America, the Caribbean and the Pacific. It is also targeting neighboring countries in Asia.
Medigen has received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) in Taiwan after finishing Phase 2 trials. Its plan is to do Phase 3 trials on 1,000 participants in Paraguay.
Bloomberg said, however, it will be a challenge to persuade health authorities in other countries to approve the vaccine as the company is not well known for producing vaccines. There is also little empirical data compared to other pharmaceutical companies. It said getting the approval of authorities in the US and Europe will be a key factor to its success overseas.
The article also said that the price of the vaccine is another hurdle. The price that Taiwan’s government bought it for is quite high at about US$32 per dose. Moderna costs US$31 and AstraZeneca only US$5.