How and why Draghi and von der Leyen snort at Astrazeneca

26 March 20213 years ago babelfish

The Heads of State and Government of the Twenty-Seven discussed how to improve vaccine production and distribution capacity, as well as tug on Astrazeneca. All the details

The accounts do not add up to Astrazeneca. If two days ago it was the day of surprises, with the discovery that 29 million doses of vaccine were filled in the Catalent plant in Anagni, yesterday was the day of the accounts. Accounts that as per the impression of recent days, continue not to return.

The Heads of State and Government of the Twenty-Seven discussed yesterday on how to improve vaccine production and distribution capacity, and on the strategy to be followed on exports of anti-Covid vaccines outside the EU (the Commission has strengthened the mechanism for the transparency and export authorization) and towards defaulting pharmaceutical companies.

This is the case of AstraZeneca, which had committed to 120 million doses in the first quarter and barely reached 18 million out of the 30 million expected, Corriere della Sera stresses.

"European citizens – Mario Draghi told Eurosummit – have the feeling of having been deceived by some pharmaceutical companies". At a press conference, the president of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, clarified that "AstraZeneca must first of all recover" on the doses agreed with the EU "and honor the contract with the Member States before being able to commit itself again to the export of vaccines "

FAILED DELIVERIES

Let's start with the delivery numbers. According to Brussels, Astrazeneca has delivered only 18 million doses of its vaccine to Europe. A number far lower than the one foreseen by the contract (120 million doses) and much lower than the figure cut at the time of the vaccine's approval, 30 million.

I have presented to EU leaders the state of play on:

Vaccines delivery & vaccination in the EU
Expectations regarding deliveries in the 2nd quarter
Exports of vaccines from the EU to the rest of the world

Together we will ensure that Europeans get their fair share of vaccines. pic.twitter.com/8KCoK9ywU2

– Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) March 25, 2021

ITALY IN DIFFICULTY

Numbers, those above, that put all the EU countries that had focused their vaccination campaigns on the Oxford pharmaceutical company in difficulty.

Italy is one of these and from the plan, Astrazeneca, writes Adnkronos , should send 5,352,250 doses in the first quarter (2,196,000 doses distributed to the regions as of March 16), 10,042,500 doses between April and June and 24.7 million in the following quarter

EU TOWARDS THE LEGAL ROUTE?

The damage caused by non-deliveries could be quantified in court. The EU Commission, if the company continues to fail to comply with the terms of the agreements, in fact, seems to be willing to continue on the legal path towards AstraZeneca, as announced by EU sources.
"We don't want to win a lawsuit for winning it, but to get more doses", especially for the second quarter, on which there is concern, the sources explain, adding that there is still "a big gap" on doses you agree, as well as “confusion about which lots go to whom”.

77 MILLION DOSES EXPORTED

The EU Commission also provides the number of vaccine doses exported: they are 77 million from December 1st to today. In particular, 31 million vaccines have been delivered in 54 countries that are part of the Covax initiative.

The EU has exported 77 million doses of vaccines to 33 countries since 1 December 2020.

In addition, as a lead donor to COVAX, it has contributed to exports to low & middle income countries.

While remaining open, the EU needs to ensure Europeans get a fair share of vaccines. pic.twitter.com/9TbTxAuFxk

– Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) March 25, 2021

29 MILLION DOSES STORED IN THE CATALENT FACTORY

Meanwhile, while the accounts on deliveries do not add up, the Nas, in the Catalent plant in Anagni, where the serum is filled, it has been discovered in the past few hours that 29 million doses of vaccine are stored. An inspection has started and Draghi has assured that there will be maximum vigilance, writes Agi.

But there is already a clash between Brussels, which is asking for clarification and is ready to stop the export of those doses, and London, with British Prime Minister Johnson threatening retaliation in the event that "arbitrary blocks" were practiced.

DENMARK: THE PROLONGED STOP TO THE VACCINE

It's still. In Denmark, doubts still persist about the safety of the vaccine. The country has therefore decided to extend the suspension of the administration of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine for another three weeks.

This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/sanita/come-e-perche-draghi-e-von-der-leyen-sbuffano-contro-astrazeneca/ on Fri, 26 Mar 2021 07:45:27 +0000.