Brazilian Sputnik V Vaccine Producer Alleges Market Protectionism by Government

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL –  Fernando Marques, the president of União Química, producer of the Sputnik V in Brazil, accused government laboratories of hindering the entry of vaccines produced by private laboratories in the country.

The pharmaceutical company has an agreement with the Russian Sovereign Fund and the Gamaleya Institute for technology transfer and for the delivery of ready doses of the immunizer to Brazil.

“From the statements of Dr. Gonzalo Vecina (former president of ANVISA, the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency), a retired PSDB party member but an advisor to the Butantan, it is quite clear that the goal is to protect the market in a pandemic time. I think this is a disservice to the nation. We can’t allow this to happen. It is important that we have a vaccine as soon as possible in Brazil,” he said angrily after being asked about the purported lobbying of companies with politicians to relax the rules.

“You don’t lobby about this, it’s the population that pressures deputies. Not a single legislator or senator has voted otherwise. We want people to say ‘I’m immunized’ with a vaccine that is 92% effective if possible, which is safer than one that is 50%”, he said in defiance of the Butantan Institute, the Coronavac’s producer.

Vecina was an advisor to the Butantan Foundation, the institution that supports the Butantan Institute’s activities, founded in 1989. The former ANVISA director said he worked in the institution until 2017, when Dimas Covas was elected to head the institution.

He rejected the potential “market protection”, raised by the president of União Química. “I have the highest respect for Fernando and União Química. There is no protection, the Butantan is state-owned. It provides services to the Ministry of Health, not to the market,” he said, who reflected on Russia’s interest in selling vaccines to Brazil.

“The Russian Investment Fund wants to supply immunizers to the world, and selling them here is a good deal,” he said.

So far, ANVISA has authorized two vaccines, being produced by Brazilian government-controlled laboratories: Butantan’s Coronavac and Fiocruz’s AstraZeneca.

Questioned by the report, Butantan chose not to comment. Fiocruz failed to reply.

União Química is the first private manufacturer to sign a vaccine sales contract with the Brazilian government. It would initially amount to ten million doses. But before the new vaccine is used, União Química needs to be granted authorization for its emergency use in Brazil.

Source: CNN Brasil

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