By Michael Erman
NEW YORK (Reuters) -The annual U.S. COVID-19 vaccine market going forward could be in the range of $5.2 billion to $12.9 billion, depending on the price of shots and who is eligible to receive them, Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) Inc's chief commercial officer said on Thursday.
Arpa Garay, speaking at Moderna's annual research and development event, said that range was based on price assumptions of $64 to $100 per shot.
The low end of the estimate also assumes only the high-risk population in the United States would be eligible for boosters - some 82 million people. The high end is based on all 258 million American adults being eligible for the shots, and assumes half would get them.
U.S. officials said the government's vaccine and antiviral treatment supply will run out over the next year, meaning they expect the shots to start being sold commercially at some point in 2023.
Globally, Garay said the size of the high-risk population that would be eligible for the shots is around 340 million people.