The invisible hand of the market is not enough to determine which vaccines should be developed or where they should be produced to ensure that the greatest number benefit from them, explains the WHO, which advocates that serums be treated as a public good.
Vaccines save millions of lives every year, but the essentially profit-driven approach to development, production and distribution leaves too many people unprotected, says the World Health Organization (WHO) in a new report.
“The hard-won gains made by immunization over the past two decades are in jeopardy,” warned WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Far too many people around the world still don’t have access to the vaccines they need, and nearly 20 million infants miss them every year. »
Countries around the world agreed last year on the goal of ensuring sustainable access to a wide range of vaccines for all, with the aim of saving 50 million lives by the end of this decade.
But to meet this challenge requires “a new paradigm”, WHO vaccine chief Kate O’Brien told a press briefing.
She underlined “the importance of the commitment of public authorities so that these vital public health goods are treated as such”.
Gross inequalities
It has taken years, if not decades, to bring vaccines against diseases like Ebola, dengue and malaria to market, largely with the help of philanthropic organizations.
At the same time, a handful of manufacturers in a few countries remain responsible for producing the most widely used vaccines, often complicating supply and access in poorer regions.
The WHO — drawing lessons from the COVID pandemic which has revealed a capacity for lightning-fast innovation tempered by stark inequalities in access to new vaccines — calls for public investments to ensure vaccine development and fair and equitable access. fair to doses.
The organization also called for investments in regional vaccine production centers and other efforts to diversify supply. During the COVID crisis, new vaccines “have been made available in less than a year, while using innovative technology platforms that have enabled faster adaptation”, recalls the report, which attributes this success to an “investment audience without precedent”.
“This incredible achievement in the face of a public health emergency of international concern has made evident the long-standing need to view vaccines as a fundamental public good rather than just a commodity,” the report said.
According to UN data, almost three-quarters of people in high-income countries have so far received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, but only a quarter in low-income countries.
COVID-19 “has highlighted inequalities in access [aux vaccins] which unfortunately are the rule rather than the exception globally,” said Dr.r Tedros.
But it’s not just COVID. For example, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine that protects against cervical cancer has only been introduced in 41% of low-income countries compared to 83% of high-income countries.
Cost is also a barrier and the WHO finds that while prices tend to be proportional to per capita income, this is not always the case and middle-income countries pay as much – or even more – than wealthier countries. for several vaccine products.
The report suggests that global efforts to forgo patent protection to speed up the production and distribution of COVID vaccines should also serve as a model for other vaccination campaigns.
It is necessary to “work on a more favorable intellectual property landscape, proactive technology transfers and the strengthening and retention of local technical and regulatory capacities”, insists the WHO.