Story at a glance
- A company the Trump administration awarded millions in part to produce syringes for COVID-19 vaccines has not made a single syringe a year later.
- Connecticut based ApiJect Systems Corp, to date, has not received federal approval necessary to begin production.
- ApiJect said in response to the initial report that the $590 million loan has not been awarded to date.
- The company maintains that the reported $456 million loan was taken from contract language, adding that the contract allows ApiJect to seek up to $456 million.
A company the Trump administration awarded millions in part to produce syringes for COVID-19 vaccines has not made a single syringe a year later.
Connecticut based ApiJect Systems Corp, to date, has not received federal approval necessary to begin production, NBC reported.
An ApiJect spokesperson told NBC that the company “is working with several vaccine pharmaceutical companies to conduct the testing and regulatory reviews of Covid-19 vaccines in the ApiJect syringe.”
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NBC reported that ApiJect was awarded up to $590 million in loans after then-President Trump used the Defense Authorization Act to spur production. The Defense Department extended a contract to ApiJect in May, which was worth up to $251 million. The company was previously awarded a contract from Health and Human Services in January for more than $450 million.
Public records do not indicate the exact dollar amount the company has received, according to NBC. The outlet added that the company needs to raise nearly $200 million to secure $590 million in loans.
ApiJect said in response to the initial report that the $590 million loan has not been awarded to date. Further, the company maintains that the reported $456 million loan was taken from contract language, adding that the contract allows ApiJect to seek up to $456 million.
“ApiJect is seeking a federal loan of $590 million to supplement $250 million in private sector capital commitments to build a factory in North Carolina capable of producing up to 3 billion single-dose, prefilled syringes annually — which, if FDA approved, can handle vaccines to battle the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. and worldwide at very high speed with no foreign supply chain dependencies,” the statement added.
ApiJect’s syringes would be more complex than a typical needle, as they would be distributed already filled with a particular vaccine. This technology has not been approved for use in the U.S.
ApiJect has met its commitments under federal contracts, NBC reported. This was achieved by securing a subcontractor ensuring the ability to make the syringes once approved by the FDA. The Pentagon and HHS both said the company is compliant with its contracts, according to the outlet.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include a response from ApiJect.
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Published on Apr 21,2021