GeoVax Urges Immediate Action on Pandemic Preparedness as Biodefense Gaps Expose Fragile Supply Chains
July 30, 2025
As mpox Clade I spreads across continents and global biosecurity threats grow, GeoVax Labs has renewed its call for decisive U.S. action to modernize vaccine preparedness. The company warns that continued dependence on a single foreign supplier for MVA-based mpox vaccines jeopardizes national readiness. GeoVax’s domestically produced candidates—including GEO-MVA for mpox and GEO-CM04S1 for COVID-19—offer scalable, broad-spectrum protection. With bipartisan momentum for domestic biodefense, GeoVax urges federal investment in onshore manufacturing, diversified platforms, and procurement before the next outbreak. As Chairman David Dodd states, “The cost of delay is steep, and the status quo is unacceptable.”
As outbreaks of Clade I mpox spread globally and new COVID variants continue to emerge, GeoVax Labs is sounding the alarm for urgent U.S. investment in domestic vaccine production and biodefense infrastructure. In a recent statement, the company emphasized the risk posed by the United States’ current dependence on a single foreign supplier of MVA-based vaccines—a critical tool for managing mpox and smallpox threats. GeoVax’s call for action comes amid a worsening global health security landscape and renewed political will to bring countermeasure capabilities home.
GeoVax’s pipeline includes two leading candidates: GEO-MVA for mpox/smallpox, designed to protect against both Clade I and II mpox strains, and GEO-CM04S1, a next-generation COVID-19 vaccine targeting immunocompromised populations. The company touts scalable, U.S.-based manufacturing using a continuous avian cell line process and favorable clinical development feedback from the European Medicines Agency and U.S. partners.
As Chairman and CEO David Dodd put it, “Pandemic readiness must be built at home—with modern, American-made solutions.” This message resonates as the Strategic National Stockpile is repeatedly depleted to meet current mpox outbreaks, undermining its primary biosecurity purpose.
Bipartisan interest is growing. ASPR leadership at BIO 2025 emphasized platform diversification and public-private partnerships, while Congressional lawmakers advance policies to reduce foreign dependency for pandemic countermeasures. Dodd welcomes this shift, urging swift procurement and manufacturing investments aligned with HHS and BARDA priorities.
GeoVax also points to recent concerns, including sustained Clade I mpox transmission in China, evidence of vertical transmission in the DRC, and low COVID booster uptake in at-risk U.S. populations. Without rapid mobilization of domestic vaccine production, these threats could outpace response efforts.
The bottom line: Biodefense must move beyond rhetoric. With proven platforms and Phase II-stage vaccines, GeoVax is ready—but federal leadership must act now.