Fair vaccine pricing please, not random acts of charity
BMJ 2016; 355 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i6173 (Published 23 November 2016) Cite this as: BMJ 2016;355:i6173
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Immunization is the best tool to improve health after water sanitation, so it has become more than a need, a right, especially for those who are more vulnerable and at risk auch as children in extreme conditions. Global society should take these sorrows into account and be prompt to act rapidly and eficaciously to solve these problems.
The vaccine industry must take its responsibility by participating in plans more rather than to show punctual generosity, which can be seen as a kind of advertising. WHO, Unicef, Gavi Alliance build a frame where planned collaboration is possible, along with each country and some NGOs. Shooting down the prices of vaccines is a way to offer them to National Health Systems and as a better distribution of resources, especially for those in great need. The Spanish Foundation of Vaccinology tries to push in this direction too.
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Not only fair prices instead of charity, but also fair access to vaccination, correct marketing by education and positive approaches to the outcome of vaccination.
I do not mean that charity acts of vaccination are useless, but they are difficult to control from the epidemiology point of view and more difficult to evaluate, both in the short and long term.
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good for MSF. Don't let the drug multinationals assume the role of charity givers. Let them do the ethical thing and help the world not their pockets
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Have always thought the NHS and indeed the WHO should pay researchers well, or indeed IT professionals, to develop products, drugs, or systems or screening protocol templates, of whatever persuasion, to send out to the world whether for profit or for benefaction depending on means (..always described as biggest employer etc etc)
This country with its heavily developed and accidentally, relatively cohesive IT and statistical structure should be a model for iterative quality improvement (apart from repair of aortic aneurysms, obviously)
Britain should be rebranded as the harbinger of health improvement at a realistic and achievable cost, the Lidl of the western health world.....I'll get my coat...the US being the playboy of the Western World...third world medicine for a lot..3D chess stuff for their rich 86 year olds
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I had no idea of the huge difference between the cost of production & the selling price of pneumococcal vaccine. In order to pressurise Pfizer into negotiating a fair price, I have 2 immediate suggestions:
1) (Easy) - an on-line petition, with accompanying bad publicity.
2) (Less easy) - a boycott of other Pfizer non-drug products (I presume they make non-drug products) until a successful outcome of such negotiations.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Cost effective vaccines products are needed at present fir everyone everywhere in the world. In India, the government is supplying all vaccines free of cost in all government hospitals. So pharmaceutical companies, governments and non governmental organisations should contribute to reducing the cost of vaccines and make arrangements to sell those vaccines at low cost. Governments should give tax exemptions to reduce the cost of vaccine productions and sales to promote supply of low cost effective vaccines.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Re: Fair vaccine pricing please, not random acts of charity
Pneumonia is still a major contributor of under 5 mortality in children. Most of these deaths happen in low-middle income countries. There is a disproportionate medical resource distribution among these countries and there is a general lack of access to cutting edge medical technology for either diagnostics or treatment. The Pharma giants are running away with their big profits and offer peanuts to these countries as a part of their corporate social responsibility. It is for this reason, the government should take over these businesses. Health of their citizens should be the priority of every government and it is their duty to prevent businesses capitalizing on health issues of common people. All vaccination should be made available free of cost in the first place and only then it can be made compulsory.
Competing interests: No competing interests