A lot must be wondering about the Pandemic Influenza(H1N1) Vaccines especially with the number of death soaring higher and higher back in Malaysia.
People tend to overlook three key factors as noted by Tadataka Yamada, the manufacturing capacity, cost, and existing delivery network we have.
Manufacturing capacity - As of now, there is impossible to manufacture the sufficient amount of vaccine for everyone in the world.
Cost might not be a barrier if we have government support.
Delivery is what I share with my sister recently. It is not about the when those vaccines are available but rather all the vaccines have been bought by the rich countries. The rich has existing contracts with vaccine manufacturers.
Everyone is trying to safeguard their interest here. Poor countries would have to wait at least a while before we are going to get some of those.
Tadataka Yamada shares in his article, Poverty, Wealth, and Access to Pandemic Influenza Vaccines:
“Manufacturers must resist the temptation to commit all their capacity to those who can pay the most. This is not a time to adhere to the “first come, first served” model of business, since we may be facing a health crisis of global proportions in which all people and countries are equally at risk.”
“I cannot imagine standing by and watching if, at the time of crisis, the rich live and the poor die. It will take collective commitment and action by all of us to prevent this from happening.”
Poverty, Wealth, and Access to Pandemic Influenza Vaccines – available here or here is a must-read for people out there. Great article with a unique perspective with no medical jargon used.
Post updated with links. > http://content.nejm.org/cgi/reprint/NEJMp0906972v1.pdf
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