Meridian Medical Technologies, LLC (Meridian), a global health security leader in providing medical countermeasures, today announced a framework contract under the Joint Procurement Agreement (JPA) was signed between Meridian and the European Commission’s Directorates-General (DG) HERA(Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority).
As part of a promotional licensing agreement, Meridian Medical Technologies is a global commercialization partner for SIGA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGA), which is the marketing authorization holder and manufacturer of Tecovirimat SIGA. Under the JPA, 13 participating countries from the European Economic Area (EEA) (Contracting Parties) can now efficiently purchase Tecovirimat SIGA, which has been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for the treatment of smallpox, monkeypox, cowpox, and vaccinia complications. This agreement will result in country-level procurement of oral Tecovirimat SIGA and serve as a template for future procurement opportunities.
“Time is of the essence during medical emergencies, as we saw in 2022 when EU member states required emergency shipments of Tecovirimat SIGA to treat patients infected with mpox,” said Meridian Medical Technologgies Commercial Head – Injectables & Health Security, Tom Handel. “This joint procurement framework contract, a significant milestone for both Meridian and HERA, reduces the time and effort required to put individual contracts in place with each member state from months to days. There are now multiple paths in Europe for streamlined procurement, allowing member state agencies to get much needed medical countermeasures into the hands of those in need.”