Thread by @deepakurup, Amidst a raging pandemic, the Indian govt deregulated vaccine pricing.   India's private [...]

Amidst a raging pandemic, the Indian govt deregulated vaccine pricing.   India's private pharma firms celebrated by announcing extortionate prices

The two firms will charge the state Rs.400-600(£4-6), and private hospitals 600-1200 (£6-12)
THREAD on why we must question this

The two vaccines —

1. @SerumInstIndia’s Covishield (Oxford-Astrazeneca) priced (£4-6)
2. Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin (vaccine developed by National Institute of Virology) (£6-12)

— are now expressly unaffordable to millions.
Now for the questions:

Let’s start with Covishield, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine which is 97% public funded

@AstraZeneca and @UniofOxford committed to distributing this vaccine ‘at cost price’. Why did the partnership renege — or allow its partners to — renege on this?

  https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/nov/23/oxford-astrazeneca-results-covid-vaccine-developing-countries

More on that "commitment" here

@UniofOxford must hold AZ (and other manufacturing partners such as SII) to account on what according to this AZ exec is "the main subject of our arrangement with Oxford"

https://money.yahoo.com/astrazeneca-promises-virus-vaccine-cost-193321628.html

More on that "commitment" here @UniofOxford must hold AZ (and other manufacturing partners such as SII) to account on what according to this AZ exec is "the main subject of our arrangement with Oxford" https://money.yahoo.com/astrazeneca-promises-virus-vaccine-cost-193321628.html

So is their manufacturing partner SII selling above cost?

Yes,by the admission of its CEO. Watch him admit to profits— not super profits —even at Rs. 150 (£1.5)  .
"Is it profitable today at a per dose basis.Yes"

(Note: SII sells to WHO at $3)  

SII's justification: the firm need super-profits to reinvest in expansion.

But, surely the government could support expansion? This can’t be an excuse to pass on the burden on to people, economically battered by an ongoing recession and now severe health shocks.

Granted this isn’t just limited to India. AZ hasn't been transparent about pricing, selling in SouthAfrica at twice the price in Europe! But, let’s park that for now.   

Also, the obvious answer is compulsory licensing but powerful lobbies are at play https://khn.org/news/rather-than-give-away-its-covid-vaccine-oxford-makes-a-deal-with-drugmaker/

They Pledged to Donate Rights to Their COVID Vaccine, Then Sold Them to Pharma

Advocates of cheap and widely available vaccines thought the pandemic might change business as usual. They were wrong.

https://khn.org/news/rather-than-give-away-its-covid-vaccine-oxford-makes-a-deal-with-drugmaker/

Now coming to Vaccine 2 —yes, the 'pharmacy of the world' has ONLY 2 manufacturers!!!— Covaxin
Another public-funded vaccine based on a strain isolated in India's National Institute of Virology

@ramakumarr asks an important question: who owns the IP? https://scroll.in/article/993257/why-its-vital-for-indians-to-know-who-owns-intellectual-property-rights-to-bharat-biotechs-covaxin

Whose intellectual property is Bharat Biotech’s publicly funded Covaxin? India deserves an answer

If it turns out that the ICMR or the government owns the rights, the Indian public has the right to know how these were leveraged during a pandemic.

https://scroll.in/article/993257/why-its-vital-for-indians-to-know-who-owns-intellectual-property-rights-to-bharat-biotechs-covaxin

And same question as vaccine 1: why does Bharat Biotech — two times costlier than Covishield — get to make super-super profits off publicly-funded vaccine development?

Price charts

Now, what can be done? I've been writing to friends and contacts in Oxford about this. I wonder if:

we can ask @UniofOxford why its Indian licensee does not adhere to Clause 2

of its official guidance.
Or, has this guidance changed?

https://innovation.ox.ac.uk/technologies-available/technology-licensing/expedited-access-covid-19-related-ip/

Now, what can be done? I've been writing to friends and contacts in Oxford about this. I wonder if: we can ask @UniofOxford why its Indian licensee does not adhere to Clause 2 of its official guidance. Or, has this guidance changed? https://innovation.ox.ac.uk/technologies-available/technology-licensing/expedited-access-covid-19-related-ip/

. @ArisKatzourakis @dgurdasani1 tagging you both on this question :)

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