A Pfizer spokesman said on Thursday that the company does not expect to cut jobs at the Portage plant where it manufactures the Covid-19 vaccine it developed with German company BioNTech.
On Wednesday the company noted in a press release that the FDA had approved Pfizer and BioNTech's "Comirnaty" Covid vaccine "for use in adults ages 65 and older, as well as individuals ages 5 through 64 years with at least one underlying condition that puts them at high risk for severe outcomes from COVID-19."
As previous versions of the vaccine were also authorized for healthy children and healthy adults, this week's announcement marks a major shift in who is eligible to receive them.
The decision comes amid intense controversy over Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s leadership at the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is part of DHHS.
Kennedy is a longtime vaccine critic who has often cited debunked research when arguing against them. Public health experts and vaccine researchers have criticized moves by the Trump administration that they say will undermine safe vaccine technology and put the public at risk.
In a brief email to WMUK, Pfizer spokesman Steve Danehy wrote that “Pfizer’s production volume is based on projected demand but we do not anticipate any impact to jobs at Kalamazoo related to the FDA’s decision.”
