Bavarian Nordic's IMVAMUNE® Smallpox Vaccine Highlighted as Success Story in WMD Center's Bio-Response Report Card

KVISTGÅRD, Denmark - October 12, 2011 - Bavarian Nordic A/S (NASDAQ OMX: BAVA) today applauded the release of the WMD Center's Bio-Response Report Card, which concluded that the response to the threat of smallpox is one of the top success stories for biodefense during the past decade.  The bipartisan Report Card highlights the winning public-private partnership between Bavarian Nordic and the U.S. Government on the development of IMVAMUNE®, a non-replicating smallpox vaccine. 

"We are proud that the experts at the WMD Center believe that our partnership with the U.S. government is a biodefense success story," said Bavarian Nordic President and CEO Anders Hedegaard.  "In addition to biodefense, we also have a strong public-private partnership with the National Cancer Institute.  We look forward to maintaining and growing these partnerships to combat bioterrorism and advance public health." 

IMVAMUNE® is the first vaccine successfully developed under Project BioShield, a program created by Congress in 2004 to develop and purchase medicines and vaccines to protect the American public from bioterrorism attacks.  Despite its eradication, bioterrorism experts are concerned about the possibility of an attack on the U.S. that exposes the population to the smallpox virus. 

In 2011, Bavarian Nordic expects to deliver 4 million doses of the vaccine to the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile, bringing the total inventory to over 6 million doses.  Under the BARDA contract, the company will deliver 20 million doses of IMVAMUNE®, with an option for 60 million more doses.

According to the report: "The development of smallpox vaccine suitable for immune compromised individuals is a textbook example of how the system should work. NIH funded both the basic and applied science and then transitioned the program to BARDA, which funded advanced development and procurement. This generation III smallpox vaccine is now in the SNS and available for use during an emergency."

About the WMD Center and Report Card
The WMD Center is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) research and education organization founded in March 2010 by the chair, vice chair, and executive director of the Congressional Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. The WMD Center's Bio-Response Report Card provides an objective, peer-reviewed, strategic assessment of the U.S. bio-response enterprise, and offers policy recommendations in seven key areas of bio-response. 

For more information, and to access the Report Card, visit www.wmdcenter.org

Contact:

Anders Hedegaard, President & CEO.
Phone: +45 23 20 30 64