EU "Slow Vaccination Due to Pharmaceutical Production Capacity"...Rebuttal to Criticism Over Early Procurement Failure

Direct Rebuttal to Member States' Criticism of Supply Shortages
"Mass Vaccine Distribution to Begin from April," Emphasized

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The European Union (EU) has issued a direct rebuttal to criticisms raised mainly by member states regarding the EU's failure to secure vaccines early and the shortage of supply. The EU emphasized that the slow distribution is due to the low production capacity of pharmaceutical companies and stated that mass distribution will begin from April.

According to major foreign media including the Associated Press on the 4th (local time), Eric Mamer, spokesperson for the EU Commission, said at a press conference held that day, "The biggest issue related to vaccine distribution is the production capacity of pharmaceutical companies," adding, "This is a problem faced by everyone." This was a direct rebuttal to criticisms raised by some member states that the EU Commission failed to secure vaccines early, resulting in a shortage of supply.

Spokesperson Mamer emphasized, "The EU has contracts with six pharmaceutical companies to secure 2 billion doses of vaccines, enough for the entire population in the region and more," and said, "I was quite surprised that some people asked why the vaccines contracted by the EU are not secured all at once immediately." He continued, "Mass vaccine distribution is expected around April," and stressed, "The EU Commission also acts as an investor supporting pharmaceutical companies with vaccine development funds."

Previously, the EU purchased vaccines from six companies: Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca-Oxford, Moderna, Sanofi-GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Janssen, and CureVac. So far, the only vaccine approved for use by the EU is the Pfizer vaccine, and vaccinations began for member states on the 27th of last month. The EU is reviewing approval for the Moderna vaccine, and the AstraZeneca vaccine is expected to be reviewed once an application is submitted. However, as some member states have criticized the slow pace of vaccinations, calls for accountability toward the EU Commission have emerged.

Stefan De Keersmaecker, spokesperson for the EU Commission's health sector, also said at the press conference that "The reason for not purchasing more Pfizer vaccines was to leave room for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to find vaccines deemed safe and effective made by various pharmaceutical companies using different technologies," emphasizing, "We do not put all our eggs in one basket."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.