Several large drug firms have announced big cuts to the amounts they charge for their vaccines in the developing world
Some of the world's leading pharmaceuticals companies have announced deep cuts in the price of vaccines for people in poor countries, in a move that will start to address a multibillion-dollar funding gap at the heart of the international effort to vaccinate children against killer diseases.
GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Crucell and Sanofi-Aventis all offered new prices for vaccines that they supply to Gavi, the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation body set up by Microsoft founder Bill Gates. GSK discounted by 67% a rotavirus vaccine, which protects against diarrhoea diseases that kill more than 500,000 children a year, and Merck also offered a deep discount on a rotavirus vaccine. Two other India-based firms Serum Institute and Panacea Biotec also offered vaccine price cuts.
The price cuts won praise from aid agencies. But although they are likely to help save lives, they will only go a small way to help fill a $3.7bn (�2.2bn) shortfall that Gavi is facing. Helen Evans, Gavi's interim chief executive, said: "These are promising offers that demonstrate industry commitment to work towards affordable and sustainable prices."
Save the Children's chief executive, Justin Forsyth, called the big pharma initiative "a landmark move, potentially saving the lives of hundreds of thousands of children". But he added: "It's important that Gavi now uses this to spur other vaccine producers to reduce prices and work to foster greater competition amongst producers to drive prices down even further and help even more children."
Oxfam and M�decins sans Frontier�s, whose doctors give vaccines in the field, blame the $3.7bn black hole in vaccine funds on a system in which Gavi bulk-buys vaccination programmes at unsustainable prices from western companies.
David Cameron is hosting a funding conference in London next Monday, which Bill Gates is due to address.
"At a time when Gavi is asking for more money, it is very important to look at these issues," said Daniel Berman of MSF. He believes there should be more focus on basic vaccines, such as the very effective one against measles. "In some countries there is a failure of routine immunisation," he said.
Mohga Kamal-Yanni, Oxfam senior policy adviser, said: "Gavi's funding of immunisation programmes makes a vital contribution to improving health in poor countries. We want to see this good work continue, but they could do so much more. The high prices Gavi currently pays for vaccines is one of the reasons behind the financial pressures it faces. Publishing the prices it pays for vaccines, and doing more to negotiate lower prices would drive down costs and ensure millions more people can be immunised against killer diseases such as hepatitis B, whooping cough and measles."
In the other price cuts announced, Serum and Panacea offered discounts on the price Gavi pays for pentavalent vaccines, which protect against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B, and Haemophilus influenzae type B. Crucell and Sanofi Pasteur said they would extend Gavi prices on pentavalent vaccines to 16 additional countries. Sanofi Pasteur also said this would also apply to its yellow fever vaccine and a rotavirus vaccine being developed by its Indian subsidiary Shantha.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/jun/06/vaccine-price-cuts-aid-agencies
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