8/14/2019 H1N!:PROFIT SYSTEM PUT PEOPLE AT RISK

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/h1nprofit-system-put-people-at-risk 1/2

SWINE 'FLU (Influenza A H1N1) is rapidly spreading. A vaccine to prevent infectionis urgently needed but it will be next year before there are sufficient suppliesto protect everyone in Britain. Eventually half the population may be infected.

Fortunately, for most people the infection is unpleasant but not serious. Thenumber of people developing complications or dying does not seem to be higher thannormal seasonal flu. But 'flu viruses are unpredictable because they can quicklychange. It could become more serious as a result.

Flu pandemics - affecting much of the world - occur every few decades. Scientistshave been warning of a new one for several years. The outbreak of bird flu in 2005could have been the beginning, but that virus was not particularly infectious tohumans.

The pharmaceutical industry has had plenty of time to get ready, so how preparedis it to meet the demand for billions of doses? Flu vaccines cannot be developedin advance, because of the way the virus changes. Neither can a production linesimply be switched on, as the vaccines involve growing a modified form of thevirus, which takes at least 12 weeks and may take months.

Safety trials should be carried out, in case of side effects. But there needs to

be factories ready to start production as soon as the development work has beendone.

Around 300 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine are produced globally each year.If manufacturers were to switch to producing a single pandemic strain vaccine,they might triple the number of doses to around 900 million.

The World Health Organisation said up to 4.9 billion doses could be produced in 12months. But if more than one shot per person is needed (two are likely) andproduction yields are lower than for seasonal flu vaccine, far fewer people wouldhave access to protection.

US manufacturer, Baxter International, said on 23 July that it has taken orders

from five countries, including Britain, Ireland and New Zealand, for a total of 80million doses of vaccine and will not take any more. It will manufacture these innew factories in the Czech Republic and Austria.

Baxter could take $30-$40 million in revenue from these contracts, according tothe Chicago Tribune. That's 50 cents a dose - about 30p. In the second quarter ofthis year, Baxter made $587 million profit - 8% up on last year. Dividend paymentsrose 13%.

Another company benefitting from the flu scare is GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). Sales ofthe company's Relenza inhaler, an alternative to Tamiflu used by pregnant womenamong others, are expected to top £600 million. This figure could be boosted by upto £2 billion once deliveries of its vaccine begin in September.

"We are not trying to generate some crazy level of profit," said GSK chiefexecutive Andrew Witty. "Equally our shareholders wouldn't want us to do it foranything other than a return."

GSK and other pharmaceutical companies won't build and maintain expensivefactories that might not be needed for many years, just to be ready for a pandemicwhen it arrives. That's why the pressure to bring out a swine flu vaccine quicklythreatens normal production of seasonal 'flu vaccines. The same productionfacilities may be needed.

8/14/2019 H1N!:PROFIT SYSTEM PUT PEOPLE AT RISK

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/h1nprofit-system-put-people-at-risk 2/2

The US government has just awarded a $35 million contract to Protein SciencesCorporation. This company is developing a new and quicker way to make vaccines,using insect cells in which to grow viruses, rather than the conventional hen'seggs. Only the day before the contract was made, the company was on the verge ofbankruptcy!

Developing and producing vaccines should not be left to the whim of corporationsrun for profit. A publicly owned and democratically controlled pharmaceutical

industry would put the necessary resources into pandemic preparation, even ifthese were not needed for many years.

It would also ensure that there was capacity to manufacture enough doses foreveryone at risk, including those living in countries where most people have noadequate health services. The speed with which this virus spread from Mexico showsthat an international plan to fight such infectious diseases is needed.

Since 9/11 the US has spent over $864 billion on war in Afghanistan and Iraq. Itwould probably cost under $10 billion to produce sufficient flu vaccine for thewhole world. There is no doubt which expenditure would make us all safer.

Jon Dale, CWI