35million unneeded Swine Flu Vaccines @ £6 each

[Gromit]

Because the Government did not negotiate a a break Clause in the contracts with manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline. That meant it still had to take 35 million doses, when it had already apparent they were not needed.

Figures in today's report show that Britain spent £654 million preparing for a possible flu pandemic, and £587 million responding to the H1N1 outbreak - a total of £1.24 billion.

This includes £1.01 billion on drugs, among them anti-virals, doses of vaccine and antibiotics.

The report said there was a lack of flexibility once the Department of Health (DoH) signed contracts for swine flu vaccine with drug manufacturers GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Baxter.

Baxter agreed to a "break clause" allowing the Government to cancel its order for some of the doses but GSK refused.

The report noted that the DoH eventually agreed to take 35 million doses of the vaccine from GSK. //

http://www.independen...ound12bn-2015429.html

I wonder if anyone was sacked for this glaring error?

[ummmm]

http://www.theanswerb...s/Question911809.html

[jake-the-peg]

I think it's a bit of an assumption that the Government would have been able to negotiate such a deal.

At the time as I recall all the European governments were scrambling to get enough stocks. The French Government was coming under fire for not having enough.

The press here was limbering up for a similar accusation

It was very much a sellers market

How exactly were GSK going to be bumped into such an agreement? or doesn't the report stoop to trivial details?

[Gromit]

Thanks Ummmm.

I am quite happy they did a good job. I am more concerned that we had to buy £millions of vaccine after it was apparent it wasn't needed. Because the contract paperwork was so badly done.

[squarebear]

Rather they had too much than too little.

[ummmm]

You're welcome :-)

I still think they had no choice. If it did get as bad as what was predicted they would have been slaughtered..

[Gromit]

jake-the-peg

Do you think that had the Government ordered 20Million doses, and 15 million on provision, that GSK would have withheld the order?

Surely there are very few customers that can place orders for £210million at a time.

[OrcadianOil]

Damned if they did (which they "did"), or damned had they not? Hindsight's such a marvellous tool, eh?

[R1Geezer]

Surprised you're bringing this up Gromit, must have been your Noo Labour bum chums!

[rov1200]

What may be interesting is how each country handled the epidemic of Swine flu. Most countries of the world were affected but Russia had only 19 cases. What did they do right?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8083179.stm

[youngmafbog]

Actually I dont blame Noo Labour for once.

Its easy with hindsight and at the time World organizations (not noo labour driven) were giving advice on pandemics.

If they did not have the vaccine and it had happened then there really woudl have been tears.

Seems to me like a damned if you do damned if you dont case

[LazyGun]

@Gromit - Pretty much every govt. in the developed world was clamouring for doses of the vaccine to cover their respective populations. There are only a limited number of vaccine manufacturers around the globe that have the capacity to cover these sort of orders.
The DoH managed to negotiate a break clause with the manufacturer of the secondary vaccine. They werent able to with GSK. GSK did not agree a break clause with any of its prospective purchasers. So, where was the glaring error you talk about in your initial post?
When they were negotiating, all the available clinical evidence suggested that H1N1 was going to be an extremely virulent epidemic, and in those circumstances, the precautionary principle should be invoked.
The Government and the Health Service, should, on balance, be lauded for their preparedness and hard work, not castigated with hindsight.

The report has 28 recommendations, and I look forward to reading them. I would be interested to see if the way in which tamiflu was eventually handed out was thought to be a good thing or not - Personally, I do feel the Govt erred in this area.

[jake-the-peg]

No Grommit I think they'd have put us at the end of the list behind the French and the Germans and the Spanish and the Dutch and.........

Wouldn't you if you were running GSK?

Is that where you'd want to be in the face of aglobal pandemic? at the end of the vaccine queue?

[TheOtherHalf]

Hi Gromit

All I know is I had the swine flu and was glad of the vaccine.

Love your new av ummmm. Theyre both cute

[naomi24]

Apparently Swine Flu will be back next winter - so if the vaccine isn't past it's 'sell by date' by then, we'll be well prepared.

http://www.telegraph....inter-scientists.html

[rowanwitch]

of course it may mutate by then so the vaccine will be useless...