Why do US producers shy away from making flu jabs?
Americans are furious at the mess the country finds itself in; not enough flu jabs and complete dependency on foreign production for supplies. How can the USA, the world's largest pharmaceutical producer and consumer, not have a major domestic industry in this field?
The pharmaceutical industry in the USA is worth $250 billion per year, the American vaccines industry (production) is worth a mere $2 billion. Manufacturers of general vaccines in the USA have gone down from 25 in 1988 to just 4 today, of which only two are involved in making flu jabs.
The industry says the reason is price controls and overregulation. The flu vaccine customer in the USA is the US Govt. The public sector has taken over the responsibility of vaccinating the poor - it has become virtually the sole purchaser.
As a result prices have been forced down. Add to this the risk of being sued (if you produce the vaccines) and it is no wonder companies have walked away, says the industry.
Even though the USA and Europe have similar standards for quality, their validation is quite different - they are much more complicated in America, says the industry. A shortage in the USA cannot be sorted out by immediate imports from abroad, even if the source country has identical standards.
Basically, says the industry, the US government has pushed other customers out, it has forced prices down and destroyed the natural market. Add to this rampant regulations and it is not surprising suppliers are not lining up with tenders.
Some business analysts say this theory does not explain why it is that the UK and France, whose governments are virtually the only customers, do not find themselves in the same predicament as the USA currently does.
De ce SUA producãtorilor timid departe de a face gripa jabs? - Why do US producers shy away from making flu jabs? - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate