Key TakeawaysMerck has joined forces with Johnson & Johnson to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine.The collaboration will help Johnson & Johnson get more vaccines to a greater number of people in a shorter period of time.Doctors applaud the move, as it will help more people get vaccinated.

Key Takeaways

Merck has joined forces with Johnson & Johnson to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine.The collaboration will help Johnson & Johnson get more vaccines to a greater number of people in a shorter period of time.Doctors applaud the move, as it will help more people get vaccinated.

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The Merck and J&J Partnership

In apress release on March 2, Merck stated that it has entered into “multiple agreements to support efforts to expand manufacturing capacity and supply ofSARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 medicines and vaccines,” noting that it has received funding of up to $268.8 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to “adapt and make available a number of existing manufacturing facilities for the production of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 vaccines and medicines.”

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Merck revealed that it will use its existing facilities in the United States to produce the vaccine, formulate it, and fill vials with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. “We are steadfast in our commitment to contribute to the global response to the pandemic as part of the remarkable efforts of the entire medical and scientific community,” Mike Nally, executive vice president of Human Health at Merck, said in the press release.

Maria Elena Bottazzi, PhDIt’s a great thing. In fact, it probably should have happened before now.

Maria Elena Bottazzi, PhD

It’s a great thing. In fact, it probably should have happened before now.

In a short statement on March 2, Johnson & Johnson said that it is “pleased” to be joining forces with Merck—typically a competitor. The company went on to say that it “has a long history of vaccine expertise,” and that they expect the manufacturing arrangement with Johnson & Johnson will “enhance our production capacity so that we can supply beyond our current commitments.”

The new arrangement comes after Merck announced that it wasdiscontinuing its COVID-19 vaccinecandidate back in January after results showed that it created an “inferior” immune response compared to those seen after natural infection and other COVID-19 vaccines.However, the company has a long history of making vaccines and has the manufacturing capacity to produce more.

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An Unlikely Alliance

According toNPR, the unlikely alliance happened at the urging of government officials. “They understood this was a wartime effort. This was their legacy. This was their time,” an unnamed senior official said. The official also said that, if the companies weren’t willing to cooperate, there was the chance that the Defense Production Act—which gives the government the power to use companies to help with wartime effort—could be utilized.

John Sellick, DO

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Support From Medical Professionals

Doctors are applauding the new partnership, which will help get more shots into arms. “It’s exactly what we need to step up the volume of the vaccine,”John Sellick, DO, an infectious disease expert and a professor of medicine at the University at Buffalo/SUNY, tells Verywell.

“It’s a great thing,”Maria Elena Bottazzi, PhD, associate dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, tells Verywell. “In fact, it probably should have happened before now.”

Setting a New Precedent?

Merck and Johnson & Johnson aren’t the first to team up in the COVID-19 fight.Pfizer and BioNTechcollaborated to create a joint vaccine, which became the first authorized COVID-19 vaccine in the U.S.

In April 2020, Pfizer shared in a press release that the vaccine’s mRNA platform originally came from BioNTech, although the companies collaborated on research and development, clinical trials, manufacturing, and distribution.

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Vaccine makersSanofi and GSKalso joined forces in April 2020 to develop a COVID-19 vaccine.

Bottazzi calls these collaborations “game-changers,” adding that Johnson & Johnson “needs all the help they can get, supplying vaccines not only to the U.S. but to fill a pretty huge global access gap.”

What This Means For YouCompany collaborations like the one between Merck and Johnson & Johnson will help to get COVID-19 vaccine doses out to the general public faster. Ultimately, it may help you and your loved ones to get vaccinated sooner.

What This Means For You

Company collaborations like the one between Merck and Johnson & Johnson will help to get COVID-19 vaccine doses out to the general public faster. Ultimately, it may help you and your loved ones to get vaccinated sooner.

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

5 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Merck.Merck to Help Produce Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine; BARDA to Provide Merck With Funding to Expand Merck’s Manufacturing Capacity for COVID-19 Vaccines and Medicines.Johnson & Johnson.Johnson & Johnson Statement on Collaboration with Merck.Merck.Merck Discontinues Development of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates; Continues Development of Two Investigational Therapeutic Candidates.Pfizer.Pfizer And BioNTech Announce Further Details on Collaboration to Accelerate Global COVID-19 Vaccine Development.Sanofi.Sanofi and GSK to join forces in unprecedented vaccine collaboration to fight COVID-19.

5 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Merck.Merck to Help Produce Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine; BARDA to Provide Merck With Funding to Expand Merck’s Manufacturing Capacity for COVID-19 Vaccines and Medicines.Johnson & Johnson.Johnson & Johnson Statement on Collaboration with Merck.Merck.Merck Discontinues Development of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates; Continues Development of Two Investigational Therapeutic Candidates.Pfizer.Pfizer And BioNTech Announce Further Details on Collaboration to Accelerate Global COVID-19 Vaccine Development.Sanofi.Sanofi and GSK to join forces in unprecedented vaccine collaboration to fight COVID-19.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Merck.Merck to Help Produce Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine; BARDA to Provide Merck With Funding to Expand Merck’s Manufacturing Capacity for COVID-19 Vaccines and Medicines.Johnson & Johnson.Johnson & Johnson Statement on Collaboration with Merck.Merck.Merck Discontinues Development of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates; Continues Development of Two Investigational Therapeutic Candidates.Pfizer.Pfizer And BioNTech Announce Further Details on Collaboration to Accelerate Global COVID-19 Vaccine Development.Sanofi.Sanofi and GSK to join forces in unprecedented vaccine collaboration to fight COVID-19.

Merck.Merck to Help Produce Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine; BARDA to Provide Merck With Funding to Expand Merck’s Manufacturing Capacity for COVID-19 Vaccines and Medicines.

Johnson & Johnson.Johnson & Johnson Statement on Collaboration with Merck.

Merck.Merck Discontinues Development of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates; Continues Development of Two Investigational Therapeutic Candidates.

Pfizer.Pfizer And BioNTech Announce Further Details on Collaboration to Accelerate Global COVID-19 Vaccine Development.

Sanofi.Sanofi and GSK to join forces in unprecedented vaccine collaboration to fight COVID-19.

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