Pfizer’s latest-generation pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is in line to reach more people in Latin America and the Caribbean through a joint effort with Argentina’s government, The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and Argentinian drugmaker Sinergium Biotech.
Under the initiative, Buenos Aires-based Sinergium will produce Pfizer's Prevnar 20 in Argentina, with doses expected to be ready to roll out by 2026. In the meantime, countries across the Americas region will be able to access the vaccine at “competitive prices” through PAHO’s Regional Revolving Funds for Access to Vaccines, a program that allows countries to make joint vaccine purchases, PAHO explained in a release.
“PAHO is committed to boosting regional production of sustainable, innovative technologies by strengthening existing capacities and our regional purchasing mechanism, the Revolving Fund for Access to Vaccines,” PAHO director Jarbas Barbosa said in a statement. “This collaboration reflects our dedication to ensuring equitable access to safe, effective vaccines that prevent severe diseases and save lives.”
The vaccine is recommended for use in children under the age of two and in adults over the age of 60 and will be available to those populations in Latin America and the Caribbean beginning early this year. While Pfizer’s earlier Prevnar 13 and Prevnar 10 have made a dent in the global burden of invasive pneumococcal disease, the bacterial infection remains a threat.
According to 2021 estimates from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluations, 155,000 children under the age of five died worldwide due to pneumonia and meningitis caused by pneumococcus, 3,345 of whom were in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Prevnar 20 covers more serotypes than previous iterations of the shot and is delivered in prefilled syringes, making administration smoother compared to Prevnar 13.
PAHO, a regional office for the Americas arm of the World Health Organization, views the importance of large-scale vaccine production and distribution as a key takeaway from the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the organization tapped Sinergium and Brazil’s Bio-Manguinhos Institute of Technology on Immunobiologics to produce regional COVID-19 vaccine shots.
Meanwhile in the U.S., Pfizer’s long-dominant Prevnar franchise has new competition with Merck’s Capvaxive. Merck’s offering counters Prevnar 20's 20-serotype coverage with protection against 23 serotypes and recently scored a key endorsement from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP).