‘Profits from Covid-19 jabs have created 9 billionaires’
Profits from Covid-19 jabs have helped at least nine people become billionaires, a campaign group said on Thursday, calling for an end to pharmaceutical corporations’ “monopoly control” on vaccine technology.
“Between them, the nine new billionaires have a combined net wealth of $19.3 billion, enough to fully vaccinate all people in lowincome countries 1.3 times,” The People’s Vaccine Alliance said in a statement.
The alliance, a network of organisations and activists campaigning for an end to property rights and patents for inoculations, said its figures were based on the Forbes Rich List data.
“These billionaires are the human face of the huge profits many pharmaceutical corporations are making from the monopoly they hold on these vaccines,” said Anna Marriott from charity Oxfam, which is part of the alliance.
EU lawmakers push bloc to back vaccine waiver
The European Parliament has urged the EU to back a push for a temporary waiver of coronavirus vaccine patents, in the face of scepticism from Brussels and key member states.
Lawmakers voting late on Wednesday narrowly approved an amendment calling on the bloc “to support the Indian and South African World Trade Organization (WTO) initiative for a temporary waiver on intellectual property rights for Covid-19 vaccines, equipment and treatments, and urges pharmaceutical companies to share their knowledge and data”.
Current jabs are effective against variants: WHO
Covid-19 vaccines currently being deployed in the fight against the pandemic in Europe appear able to protect against all variants that are circulating and causing concern, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) regional director has said.
Hans Kluge said health authorities should remain vigilant on the rising number of cases in the region of Covid-19 caused by a variant that emerged in India, but stressed that vaccination and infection control measures would help prevent its spread.
He warned however that the progress against the coronavirus pandemic remains “fragile” and international travel should be avoided.