Healthy Skepticism Library item: 17732

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Publication type: Report

Giving Developing Countries the Best Shot: An overview of vaccine access and R&D
MSF/Oxfam Report 2010 May 11
www.oxfam.org/en/policy/giving-developing-countries-best-shot

Abstract:

GLOBAL VACCINE DRIVE FACING ACUTE CRISIS – NEW OXFAM / MSF REPORT EXAMINES WHY?

Full text:

In a new report published today, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and Oxfam
International warn that the global approach to ensure access to life-saving
vaccines for children in the poorest
countries is hampered by high prices and is now facing an acute funding
crisis.

‘The report, entitled Giving Developing Countries the Best Shot, shows how
because of the fundamental nature of the vaccine market, it still takes
years for expensive new vaccines developed for wealthy countries to reach
children across the developing world, and that products emerging from the
research pipeline are often insufficiently adapted to developing country
needs and conditions’, said Dr. Tido von Schoen-Angerer, Director of the
MSF Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines.

The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), which leads
international efforts to boost immunisation rates in developing countries,
has reported considerable success in expanding access to vaccines against
Hib and Hepatitis B, two diseases that cause considerable mortality. But
the organisation is now facing an acute cash crisis due to high prices for
new vaccines and stagnating donor resources. Without an additional US$2.4
billion in donor contributions, GAVI will have to make significant
cut-backs that will reduce access to vaccines in poor countries.

GAVI’s attempts to speed up the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate
vaccines (PCV) are an illustration of the hurdles faced by the
organisation. Used for a number of years in wealthy countries, PCV have
prevented hundreds of thousands of cases of pneumonia, meningitis and other
serious infections. They have also generated billions of dollars in
revenue for multinational drug companies. But the joint efforts of GAVI
and donor countries to improve uptake of these blockbuster products in
resource-poor settings have stumbled.

Despite repeated announcements heralding the impending roll-out of PCV
across developing countries, PCV will remain out of reach for most children
due to problems with supply and a lack of funds. Kenya is the only
GAVI-eligible country that will receive the newer version of this
life-saving vaccine in 2010 and the cost will be US$21 per child. This is
an unacceptably high price for donors and developing countries to bear.

‘The newest vaccines continue to be produced by only a handful of
multinational pharmaceutical companies whose oligopoly status allows them
to charge high prices,’ said Rohit Malpani, senior policy advisor at Oxfam.
‘Despite GAVI’s negotiating power, the price of new vaccines is too high.
The Best Shot report highlights novel ways of developing affordable
vaccines to improve children’s access to them, increasing their chances of
survival.’

One of these novel ways is illustrated by the collaboration between the
World Health Organization, the U.S. non-profit PATH and the Serum Institute
of India, which has resulted in a meningitis vaccine that will cost no more
than $0.50 per dose. This vaccine, which is tailored to the needs of
countries in the so-called ‘Meningitis Belt’ in sub-Saharan Africa, should
be available by the end of the year.

MSF and Oxfam are calling for changing the current system so that donor
funds incentivise the development of adapted vaccines and ensure affordable
prices.

In addition to these reforms, routine immunisation needs to be
strengthened. In developing countries, two million children die every year
because of the failure to vaccinate with existing vaccines.

‘Again during the past two years MSF has responded to major outbreaks of
measles and meningitis,’ said Dr. Tido von Schoen-Angerer. ‘This is because
an increasing number of children are missing their measles vaccination and
because there is not yet a long-duration meningitis vaccine accessible. The
overall goal needs to be to increase rates of routine immunisation and to
ensure access to newer vaccines.’

In 2009, MSF treated over 50,000 cases and vaccinated more than 7.4 million
people against meningitis. In 2008, the organisation treated more than
32,000 measles cases and vaccinated more than 1.9 million children in
response to measles outbreaks.

For more information, please contact:
Guillaume Bonnet, MSF Access Campaign +41 79 203 13 02
Rohit Malpani, Oxfam International +1 202 415 5533