Shares of vaccine developers soared on Tuesday after the United States reported its first human death from H5 avian influenza.
Moderna stock rose 13%, Novavax rose nearly 15% and CureVac stock rose 10%. Shares in Pfizer, one of the largest US pharmaceutical companies, rose 2% and GSK rose 1%.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday confirmed the death of an elderly patient with underlying health conditions from avian influenza H5 in Louisiana.
The CDC announced that there have been 66 cases of H5N1 avian influenza in the United States since the beginning of 2024, but added that the risk to the general public “remains low.”
“Most importantly, no human-to-human spread of infection has been confirmed,” authorities said. “As in Louisiana, most H5 avian influenza infections are associated with animal-to-human exposure.”
Last July, Moderna was awarded $176 million in funding from the U.S. government to develop an avian influenza vaccine using messenger RNA technology. Novavax and CureVac are also developing early-stage avian influenza vaccines.
Pfizer announced in May that it was developing a vaccine for an avian influenza strain that is currently causing significant disease in birds and cattle and has “recent case reports indicating limited transmission to humans.” did.
The U.S. government also has large stockpiles of avian influenza vaccines, which it says could be widely available within weeks. However, President Joe Biden’s administration has not yet approved the rollout of the jab.
Health officials said they will continue to closely monitor the worst bird flu outbreak to hit the United States. The virus is spreading through poultry farms, affecting more than 900 herds in 16 states.
California, the state hardest hit by the cattle outbreak, declared a public health emergency in December.
