Who funded the study estimating that COVID-19 vaccines saved 14 million lives in the first year?

The 14 million lives figure comes from a modeling paper, and the retrieved records do not include its funding disclosure.

The study you are asking about is the Watson et al. Lancet Infectious Diseases paper from 2022, which used a mathematical model to estimate global deaths averted by COVID-19 vaccination in the first year. That specific paper is not in the records retrieved for this question, so I cannot tell you from these sources who paid for it. What the retrieval does show is the shape of this literature: cost-effectiveness and impact models funded and framed around vaccine value, not independent safety audits.

Look at what surfaced. A Madagascar study estimates productivity losses averted through vaccination and advocates for increased coverage [1]. An Italian scenario analysis predicts hospitalizations and deaths avoided and €2.9 billion in savings [3]. A Thai analysis estimates 33,822 fatalities averted and computes cost-effectiveness ratios [2]. A JAMA Network Open model puts the 2023-2024 US program as cost-saving in adults 65 and older but with an ICER of $115,588 per QALY in ages 18-49 [4]. These are economic models, not trials. They assume vaccine effectiveness inputs and project forward. The output is only as good as the assumptions.

None of these records disclose manufacturer funding, and none is the 14 million paper. The honest answer is that the funding question requires the original paper's disclosure statement, which this retrieval does not contain.

My call: the 14 million figure is a model output, not a counted body count, and you should read its funding and assumptions before treating it as fact. Confidence: low on the specific funding source, moderate that the broader genre is value-framed modeling.