Look beyond profit

Re: “Who Invented Covid-19 Vaccines? Drugmakers Battle Over Patents”, (Business, Dec 31).

In the 1940s, the research team in Oxford that researched and produced penicillin went against all advice and did NOT patent it, saying it was “for the good of mankind”. Instead they gave it to five large US companies to work on; one of these became Pfizer. Later on these same companies would not pass on the production details as they said it was proprietary commercial information.

Eighty years on, again at Oxford, AstraZeneca announced it would NOT profit from a pandemic and all its Covid vaccines are, at present, “at cost”, about US$4 (132 baht). This is not widely known.

All the other manufacturers are making huge profits, charging $20 up and squabbling among themselves about patents’ worth, apparently billions of dollars. It saddens me that the profit motive still seems to be the only consideration. Profit is important, but not the only driver of progress.

DARHID PATTAYA