Big Pharma lobbies for slice of G20 fund to prepare for next pandemic

Big Pharma lobbies for slice of G20 fund to prepare for next pandemic

Big Pharma is offering to reserve vaccines, medicines and tests for low-income nations in preparation for the next pandemic in exchange for a fee and a commitment that governments not impose restrictions on trade.

Ahead of talks on pandemic preparedness at the World Health Organization next week, the industry is lobbying to win a slice of a multibillion-dollar pandemic preparedness fund proposed by the G20 to cover the cost of reserving manufacturing capacity at existing plants.

The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations argues the mechanism would enable the rapid distribution of supplies to low- and middle-income nations in the event of a new Covid-19 variant or the next pandemic.

But the initiative faces resistance from critics of Big Pharma, who argue that waiving intellectual property rights on medicines and localising manufacturing in Africa is a better way to ensure equality of access to vaccines, treatments and diagnostics in the developing world.

Some civil society groups have criticised Moderna, Pfizer and BioNTech, which made the effective Covid vaccines based on messenger RNA technology, for rushing to sign supply deals with rich nations ahead of Covax — a body set up to supply low income countries.

Public Citizen said the Ifpma proposal would provide a “corporate