What we’ve learned from three years of fighting COVID-19
Learn more about our industry's COVID-19 efforts, including how companies responded to the pandemic.

What we’ve learned from three years of fighting COVID-19.
Learn more about our industry's COVID-19 efforts, including how companies responded to the pandemic.
What we’ve learned from three years of fighting COVID-19.
Three years ago, amidst an unprecedented public health crisis, biopharmaceutical industry made a commitment to fight COVID-19. Leveraging decades of research and investments in emerging technologies and scientific expertise, we dedicated ourselves to finding medical solutions to prevent, diagnose and treat those impacted by the coronavirus.
Working around the clock, biopharmaceutical researchers conducted hundreds of clinical trials to identify potential treatments and vaccines and bolstered investments into new technologies to speed the manufacturing of safe and effective medicines. Biopharmaceutical manufacturers also partnered with community groups and local governments to spread awareness about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines and increase access.
In a new resource, we spotlight how the industry responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today, roughly 81% of Americans have at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose. We now have bivalent vaccines authorized by U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to further address two strains of COVID-19 and over 16 billion doses of vaccines have been manufactured and delivered across the globe. COVID-19 treatments and vaccines have saved millions of lives and billions of dollars.
In fact, between December 2020 and March 2022, U.S. vaccination efforts prevented:
Biopharmaceutical companies are continuing to research and develop ways to fight COVID-19, including helping explore medical solutions for patients suffering from long-COVID symptoms. And we’re also continuing research in order to be prepared for the next pandemic.
As we mark three years of fighting COVID-19, here are three things to know about how the biopharmaceutical industry has responded to this pandemic:
As we continue to fight COVID-19, it is important to catalog and recognize innovative approaches to drug development that have been successfully deployed during the global pandemic and can be used beyond COVID-19. We must also acknowledge the operational, technological and regulatory considerations that pose unique challenges to biopharmaceutical companies, one of which is the need for strong IP protections to foster and sustain continued investment in development of innovative medicines. To preserve a robust U.S. biopharmaceutical research ecosystem and meet the needs of patients who need innovative treatments, we should look to policies that will support patient access and affordability without undermining the development of tomorrow’s life-saving medicines.
Biopharmaceutical companies will continue to work with stakeholders, including regulators, to assess the extent innovative approaches and durable learnings should be utilized routinely in medical product development and pandemic preparedness and health resiliency in the future. The lessons we’ve learned over the past years will have positive implications lasting long beyond our fight with COVID-19 to future health threats.
To learn more about our industry's COVID-19 efforts, including how companies responded to the pandemic, visit here.