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Under the so-called export transparency mechanism, countries must inform the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, of their decisions to block or allow the export of vaccines outside the bloc. The commission did not oppose Italy’s decision, an EU official said. The company declined to comment.
The move came after the country’s Prime Minister Mario Draghi called for a tougher stance on companies failing to meet their delivery commitments at last week’s summit.
Italy’s Foreign Ministry said the decision on 250,700 doses of the vaccine was due to a prolonged shortage of vaccines in Europe and Italy, as well as delays in the supply of AstraZeneca. He also said that Australia was considered an “inviolable” country.
The impact of the decision is likely to be more symbolic, given that a relatively small batch of vaccines has been blocked compared to the company’s planned deliveries to the EU and other countries. But such a move demonstrates Draghi’s intention to be tougher on drug makers that fail to meet their commitments in the EU and could lead other governments to retaliate protectionist.
In January, the European Commission adopted legislation restricting the export of coronavirus vaccines in the event that drug manufacturers fail to meet EU delivery targets. The rules came into effect after AstraZeneca informed the EU that it was unable to fulfill its obligations under the pre-hire agreement.
Harmful protectionism
Italy is so far the first country to block the export of vaccines outside the EU, although more than 170 applications have already been given the green light, an EU diplomat said.
Such a decision could renew the concern expressed by many, including the World Health Organization (WHO), that the EU is engaging in harmful protectionism at a time when countries around the world are rushing to vaccinate their populations in amid growing concern over the rapid spread of coronavirus.
So far, the EU has vaccinated just over 8%. of its population, compared to 32.3% respectively. and 24.3 percent. Population in the United Kingdom and the United States, according to Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker. The community goal of at least 70% vaccination of the adult population in the region by late summer.
Export controls can also become a headache for pharmaceutical manufacturers with so many vaccine facilities in the EU. Most of the companies that play a key role in the vaccine production process have production capacity in the Community which is used to supply vaccines to countries outside the Community or to send them to other countries for completion before they are recovered.
Johnson & Johnson, whose vaccine is expected to be approved by the European drug regulator next week, has made clear in its agreement with the EU that it will ship the vaccines to the US for bottling and packaging before returning them.
At the latest summit, Draghi called on leaders to take a more determined and pragmatic approach to speeding up vaccinations, saying that the supply of vaccines in the EU must move much faster.
He was not convinced by a slide shown to leaders stating that available vaccine doses would be sufficient to vaccinate the majority of the community population at the end of September. Draghi said it was impossible to forecast deliveries in the second and third quarters of the year.
The new Italian prime minister is working to reshape the slow and uneven Italian vaccination campaign, focusing on logistics and military assistance as new strains accelerate the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
It has made drastic changes, replacing two key officials in charge of fighting the coronavirus, and aims to simplify and standardize vaccination procedures across the country, the officials said, asking that their names not be made public.
Draghi hopes the enhanced vaccination campaign will help revive an economy that has contracted nearly nine percent by 2020, hit by a pandemic and regional and national quarantines.
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