EU's Breton says Pfizer and Sputnik V can help offset AstraZeneca vaccine delays
- 3 years ago
The European Union will be able to stick to its vaccination targets this quarter despite AstraZeneca delivery delays as Pfizer is producing faster than planned, EU industry commissioner Thierry Breton said on Saturday. https://www.eudebates.tv/debates/eu-policies/health-eu-policies/ema-investigates-astrazeneca-vaccine-and-thromboembolic-events/
AstraZeneca said on Friday it would try to deliver 30 million doses to the EU by the end of March, down from a contractual obligation of 90 million and a previous pledge made last month to deliver 40 million doses.
#eudebates #Covid_19 #AstraZeneca #coronavirus #Corona #COVD19 #Health #COVID #vaccine
Breton told France’s Europe 1 radio that the delay was unacceptable, but that for now there were no plans to sue the company.
“The good news is that even though there are delays with AstraZeneca we won’t be late with our vaccination programme in the first quarter,” Breton said.
“Pfizer is producing more, much more than planned and is going to deliver more to us,” he added.
EU leaders have come under criticism for a slower rollout of vaccinations than in other countries such as Britain or the United States due to a longer approval and purchasing process and repeated delivery delays.
AstraZeneca’s new lower supply target hinges on the bloc’s drug regulator approving supplies from a factory in the Netherlands, an internal document showed, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Breton said that AstraZeneca had issues with testing, which were a sign of logistics problems, and urged its board of directors to take action.
He also criticized its French-born chief executive Pascal Soriot for remaining in Australia despite the problems, which he said meant he was able to visit the companies’ plants when Soriot could not.
“I won’t say that I know their factories better than them, but I’m on site,” Breton said.
On Wednesday afternoon, the European Commission presented its proposal for the “Digital Green Certificate” – so-called vaccination passports – to make free travel in the EU possible again this summer.
To avoid discrimination, the certificate will provide proof that a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, has natural immunity from it, or has a recent negative test result, according to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
During a press conference on Wednesday, she stated that she hopes that the Member States and the European Parliament will adopt the certificate quickly, so that it can be used as early as June.
What will it look like?
The certificates will be issued in digital format, so they can be shown on a smartphone, or on paper, depending on the preference of its holder.
Both versions will work with a QR code that contains necessary data, as well as a digital signature that should guarantee the “authenticity, integrity and validity” of the certificate.
AstraZeneca said on Friday it would try to deliver 30 million doses to the EU by the end of March, down from a contractual obligation of 90 million and a previous pledge made last month to deliver 40 million doses.
#eudebates #Covid_19 #AstraZeneca #coronavirus #Corona #COVD19 #Health #COVID #vaccine
Breton told France’s Europe 1 radio that the delay was unacceptable, but that for now there were no plans to sue the company.
“The good news is that even though there are delays with AstraZeneca we won’t be late with our vaccination programme in the first quarter,” Breton said.
“Pfizer is producing more, much more than planned and is going to deliver more to us,” he added.
EU leaders have come under criticism for a slower rollout of vaccinations than in other countries such as Britain or the United States due to a longer approval and purchasing process and repeated delivery delays.
AstraZeneca’s new lower supply target hinges on the bloc’s drug regulator approving supplies from a factory in the Netherlands, an internal document showed, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Breton said that AstraZeneca had issues with testing, which were a sign of logistics problems, and urged its board of directors to take action.
He also criticized its French-born chief executive Pascal Soriot for remaining in Australia despite the problems, which he said meant he was able to visit the companies’ plants when Soriot could not.
“I won’t say that I know their factories better than them, but I’m on site,” Breton said.
On Wednesday afternoon, the European Commission presented its proposal for the “Digital Green Certificate” – so-called vaccination passports – to make free travel in the EU possible again this summer.
To avoid discrimination, the certificate will provide proof that a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, has natural immunity from it, or has a recent negative test result, according to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
During a press conference on Wednesday, she stated that she hopes that the Member States and the European Parliament will adopt the certificate quickly, so that it can be used as early as June.
What will it look like?
The certificates will be issued in digital format, so they can be shown on a smartphone, or on paper, depending on the preference of its holder.
Both versions will work with a QR code that contains necessary data, as well as a digital signature that should guarantee the “authenticity, integrity and validity” of the certificate.