Pfizer will charge $110 to $130 for a dose of its COVID-19 vaccine once the U.S. government stops buying the shots.

Executives said the commercial pricing for adult doses could start early next year, depending on when the government phases out its program of buying and distributing the shots. The price would make the two-dose vaccine more expensive for cash-paying customers than annual flu shots. Those can range in price from around $50 to $95, depending on the type, according to CVS Health, which runs one of the nation's biggest drugstore chains.

A Pfizer executive said Thursday that the price reflects increased costs for switching to single-dose vials and commercial distribution. The executive, Angela Lukin, said the price was well below the thresholds “for what would be considered a highly effective vaccine.” The drugmaker said last year that it was charging the U.S. $19.50 per dose, and that it had three tiers of pricing globally, depending on each country's financial situation. In June, the company said the U.S. government would buy an additional 105 million doses in a deal that amounted to roughly $30 per shot.

The vaccine brought in $36.78 billion in revenue last year for Pfizer and was the drugmaker’s top-selling product. Analysts predict that it will rack up another $32 billion this year, according to FactSet. But they also expect sales to fall rapidly after that.

According to the CDC, about 90% of the adult U.S. population has already received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine (free to them). But only about half of that population has received any booster dose. Far, far fewer have received additional booster shoots; not even with the US government still paying. Only 5% of Americans (with the shot free to them) have received the current, new bivalent booster.

Apathy - along with future cost prohibition - may put the USA on the same health care footing as some Third World Countries. Right now, COVID vaccines and all boosters are free to all Americans. Once the vaccine supply - that the Biden government has purchased for American citizens - runs out (by either demand or by more likely, "use by" expiration date), people will then have to pay (via insurance or out-of-pocket) if they want to have vaccination protection from COVID-19. Not all Americans have health insurance.

Obviously when the government stops paying (making high out-of-pocket costs the way for getting vaccinated) vaccinations will be even more unappealing – or even cost prohibitive – for many Americans. It seems that could happen next year.

Meanwhile, COVID isn’t going away. The virus will continue to mutate. People will continue to die. Plus, more & more will face disabling Long COVID. Vaccination and masking are human’s only defenses at this current time. Masking is pretty much a societal thing of the past; therefore, vaccination remains as important than ever. It may be America's best tool in shortening the Pandemic that really was never anticipated to continue on for 3 years and more. The more people vaccinated, the less the spread of this deadly virus. Although vaccinated people can still get infected, they are far less likely to infect others than do unvaccinated people. This is a good reason for young people - with strong immune systems - to get vaccinated.

But a $130 individual price tag may stop some, who might have otherwise get a protective shot. In the not distant future, those (without proper insurance of some sort) may not be able afford to get a COVID vaccination; even if they want it.