Pfizer to Offer Patented Drugs to World’s Poorest Countries

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Pfizer to Offer Patented Drugs to World’s Poorest Countries
27 May 2022
min read

News Synopsis

US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has announced that it will sell its patented medicines to the world's poorest countries not for profit as part of a new initiative presented at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

CEO Albert Bourla said billions of the company's COVID-19 vaccine, Comirnaty, are being provided free of charge to low-income countries, primarily by the U.S. government. Still, those quantities are not available at this time.

The "Transactions for a Healthier World" focuses on five areas, infectious diseases, cancer, inflammation, rare illnesses, and women's health. Pfizer is currently on Comirnaty, Paxlovid, COVID vaccines, and oral treatments.

Five countries: Rwanda, Ghana, Malawi, Senegal, and Uganda have devoted themselves to joining, with an additional forty countries, 27 low-earnings and 18 lower-middle-earnings, eligible to signal bilateral agreements to participate.

Developing countries face 70% of the world's disease burden, but receive only 15% of the world's medical costs, with devastating consequences. Essential medicines and vaccines usually take 4-7 years to reach the poorest countries. Also, supply chain issues and resource-poor healthcare systems make it difficult for patients to receive them after they have been approved.

TWN In-Focus