Moderna CEO: COVID-19 vaccine surplus possible in 2022
Moderna Inc. CEO Stephane Bancel said Friday that the company is on track to produce 1 billion doses of its COVID-19 vaccine this year, and that with manufacturers producing large quantities, there could be an oversupply in 2022.
During a virtual event on vaccine manufacturing, Bancel said the Massachusetts-based biotechnology company is also on pace to produce up to 1.4 billion next year, Reuters reported.
"Next year there is going to be way too many vaccines for people on the planet," he said, noting that manufacturers should create as many vaccines as possible this year, according to Reuters.
Moderna did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
FILE - Vials of the Moderna Covid-19 disease vaccine at Recipharm plant.
Bancel said the company is also working to have a booster shot to protect people against COVID-19 variants, which he hopes will be approved by the northern hemisphere sometime in late summer or early fall, according to Reuters.
Bancel said in an exclusive interview last week on FOX Business' "Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street" that booster shots for the COVID-19 vaccine will be necessary at some point.
"When you get infected, you make antibodies or [when] you get vaccinated and make antibodies, over time the level of antibodies going to go down, that is normal and natural," Bancel told host Maria Bartiromo. "Over time boosts are going to be required, it is too early to know how frequently because we don’t have enough data."
RELATED: 'Go and get 'em, folks': All adults in US now eligible for COVID-19 vaccine
The news comes on the same day the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is set to meet to discuss guidance regarding Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Last week, federal health officials recommended a "pause" in the use of J&J's single-dose shot as a precautionary measure to allow the agency to investigate reports of rare, but serious blood clots and to alert doctors about how to treat them.
Committee members convened last Wednesday but delayed a vote regarding guidance on the J&J vaccine. Many committee members felt there was insufficient data to make an evidence-based decision that day.
FOX News' Kayla Rivas and the Associated Press contributed to this report.