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After this year’s rush to stock up on the vaccine against the H1N1 Flu, some European countries are now trying to unload millions of doses. Countries such as Spain, Germany, The Netherlands and France have found themselves with huge stockpiles because far fewer citizens than expected sought the vaccine out. Governments are hoping to cancel orders or sell the excess vaccines to developing nations even as they’re being criticized for overreacting and overspending against the disease. The World’s Gerry Hadden reports.
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JEB SHARP: I’m Jeb Sharp and this is The World, a co-production of the BBC World Service, PRI, and WGBH/Boston. The United States appears to be scaling back plans to stockpile the swine flu vaccine. An Australian drug maker said today that the U.S. government has cancelled half its original order for the H1N1 vaccine. This news comes as many European countries are also cancelling orders due to an oversupply of the vaccine. And that’s left European politicians explaining why they ordered so much in the first place. The World’s Gerry Hadden reports.
GERRY HADDEN: Spain says it’s facing an excess of 17 million doses of H1N1 vaccine; Germany, 50 million doses; France, 50 million as well. These countries have ended up with much more vaccine than they can use for several reasons. Sophie Delaporte is with the French Healthy Ministry. She told French public radio that one reason is there’s been is a shift in expert opinion.
SOPHIE DELAPORTE: [Voiceover] You have to understand that back in July when we planned the purchase of the vaccine, the experts recommended two doses per person, so we made our purchase accordingly.
HADDEN: European health authorities now recommend just one dose per adult and per child age 10 and older. So that’s left a lot of extra vaccine. Added to that Europeans are wary of the vaccine. Far fewer than expected have stepped forward to get it. In France less than 10 percent of citizens have received it. The percentage is lower in Germany. Many Europeans say they want to see more thorough safety trials or proof that the H1N1 flu is really dangerous. But critics say there are other reasons for the vaccine glut. Opposition politicians in France accuse the government of wildly over-spending under the guise of preparedness. Socialist Party spokesman Benoit Hamon says the government gave in to pressure from the pharmaceutical industry.
BENOIT HAMON: [Voiceover] These days the pharmaceutical industry plays an important role in these sorts of decisions, and that’s why the Socialist Party is justified in asking for an inquiry in Parliament. We want to know who made the decision to buy so many doses and how that decision was made.
HADDEN: Pharmaceutical companies have already sold billions of dollars worth of H1N1 vaccine. They say the vaccine has been necessary and was expensive to develop. The former president of the French Red Cross, Marc Gentilini, also criticizes what he calls Europe’s monstrous over investment in vaccines. But he doesn’t blame big business or political leaders.
GENTILINI: [Voiceover] I don’t blame the health minister, but the medical experts. They created an apocalyptic scenario. There was pressure from the World Health Organization, which began waving the red warning flags too early. It hasn’t turned out to be the great mortal illness as predicted.
HADDEN: Of course last spring and summer no one knew how bad the H1N1 pandemic would become. French authorities insist erring on the side of caution was better than getting caught in a major epidemic with not enough vaccine. France’s foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, told public radio that he’s scandalized by the fact that this is a scandal at all. What would we have said if the outbreak had been more severe? To calm the political storm, European governments are trying to negotiate out of last year’s contracts with the big vaccine producers. And they’re looking to sell doses abroad, to developing nations still waiting for their share of the vaccine. One potential client for France is Mexico, where the H1N1 virus first appeared early last year. Though Mexico was ground zero for the disease, it’s still waiting for most of its vaccine orders to be filled. At a café in Mexico City, 67-year-old resident Pedro Cuevas says he wants to be vaccinated, but he can’t be because there are still no doses available to the general public.
PEDRO CUEVAS: [Speaking Spanish]
HADDEN: He says I listen constantly to the news about how we old people are going to get vaccinated. But only god knows when that will be! Only healthcare workers have gotten it so far. It’s absurd. I can’t go to the pharmacy and buy, he says, because there’s none for sale. European countries would like to sell their excess doses for the same price they paid, between $9 and $14 each, but competition between countries will likely drive prices down. Some charity groups say many developing countries can’t afford the vaccine even at discount prices. They’re calling on Europe to donate its unwanted vaccines. For The World I’m Gerry Hadden in Barcelona.
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