Clear Threat of Scarcity in Early Part of Vaccination Drive, Must Avoid Oxygen-tussle like Situation
- 3 years ago
As the deadline of 1st May nears, is the government adequately prepared to scale up vaccination for all above 18 years and why has a pricing controversy erupted ?
Speaking to Mitali Mukherjee, Dr. Anant Bhan, Researcher, Global Health, Bioethics & Health Policy
said the recent communication around vaccinations and prices emanated from confusion and a lack of clarity or leadership. Dr Bhan pointed out that it was very surprising that private manufacturers are setting prices in press releases without the government stepping in. This was not to say that manufacturers should not make profit, but at this time of the pandemic should this be the priority ?
Mr Subhash Chandra Garg , Former Finance Secretary of India said unnecessary confusion around pricing had been created because of considerations other than health policy. The plan was for the Central Government to bear the entire cost of vaccines, and thus also be shown as the benefactor of people. Trouble started with distress calls by one manufacturer for capital to scale up. Even at that stage, the Central government did not take it seriously. However when the crisis escalated, the Central government seems to have panicked- manufacturers were not just given advance prices for supply and opened to the private sector at a higher price, they were also, in a surprise move, allowed to set a differential price for states.
Dr Bhan said the immediate attention should be on getting transparency on the current supply for both manufacturers, as early signs seemed to indicate an early shortfall in vaccine supply.
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Speaking to Mitali Mukherjee, Dr. Anant Bhan, Researcher, Global Health, Bioethics & Health Policy
said the recent communication around vaccinations and prices emanated from confusion and a lack of clarity or leadership. Dr Bhan pointed out that it was very surprising that private manufacturers are setting prices in press releases without the government stepping in. This was not to say that manufacturers should not make profit, but at this time of the pandemic should this be the priority ?
Mr Subhash Chandra Garg , Former Finance Secretary of India said unnecessary confusion around pricing had been created because of considerations other than health policy. The plan was for the Central Government to bear the entire cost of vaccines, and thus also be shown as the benefactor of people. Trouble started with distress calls by one manufacturer for capital to scale up. Even at that stage, the Central government did not take it seriously. However when the crisis escalated, the Central government seems to have panicked- manufacturers were not just given advance prices for supply and opened to the private sector at a higher price, they were also, in a surprise move, allowed to set a differential price for states.
Dr Bhan said the immediate attention should be on getting transparency on the current supply for both manufacturers, as early signs seemed to indicate an early shortfall in vaccine supply.
Like our work? Click here to support The Wire: https://thewire.in/support
The founding premise of The Wire is this: if good journalism is to survive and thrive, it can only do so by being both editorially and financially independent. This means relying principally on contributions from readers and concerned citizens who have no interest other than to sustain a space for quality journalism. As a publication, The Wire will be firmly committed to the public interest and democratic values.
We publish in four different languages!
For English, visit www.thewire.in
for Hindi: http://thewirehindi.com/
for Urdu: http://thewireurdu.com
for Marathi: https://marathi.thewire.in
If you are a young writer or a creator, you can submit articles, essays, photos, poetry – anything that’s straight out of your imagination – to LiveWire, The Wire’s portal for the young, by the young. https://livewire.thewire.in/
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