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Europe’s ultra-cautious vaccine strategy is dangerous
Read more on - Polity | Economy | Schemes | S&T | Environment
- Strange vaccination management: Europe’s carefully planned vaccination drive has turned into a major crisis. The European Union has fallen behind in rates of vaccination compared with other developed nations, due to a procurement process that failed to be competitive amid global demand. The situation has become so fraught that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on 17-03-2021 that Brussels was considering whether to block vaccine exports to make sure “Europe gets its fair share” — an announcement that drew many angry responses from non-E.U. countries expecting doses.
- Knee-jerk blocking: The supply problem has been compounded this week by a number of European governments’ decisions to block the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine because of safety concerns — not only disrupting the supply of the vaccine but potentially causing long-term public concerns about the drug, even if it is later proven safe, as many experts predict. Germany, Italy, Spain, Ireland and France are among the countries that have suspended the use of the vaccine, developed amid much fanfare by researchers at Oxford University and makes up a significant part of the vaccine supply across the continent. (worry is related to a number of blood-clotting incidents, some fatal)
- Correlation not causation: The prevailing view among scientists is that these incidents are likely to be unrelated to the inoculation — essentially, that correlation does not mean causation. Vaccines protect against one thing: the infection or the infection plus disease, but don’t protect you against everything else that might possibly happen to you! Europe’s top drug regulator, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), is expected to announce the initial results of a safety review soon, hopefully providing some much-needed clarity. But the toll has already been high for Europe either way, with expired doses, surging cases and weakened morale.
- Third wave: Some parts of Europe are now already in their third wave of infections. With every day of vaccination delay, there are hospitalizations and deaths. In Europe, the biggest problem is not recklessness, but cautiousness. The continent was hit hard and early in the pandemic. Its success in the year since has varied across the Europe, with almost all nations — even ones that followed most recommended measures — suffering large tolls.
- Government role: To some extent, this suggests that some elements of the virus’s spread may be out of government control. But getting vaccines in people’s arms is a metric very much in government control. And that’s where Europe’s leaders, including those praised for their reason and technocratic inclinations, such as Germany’s Angela Merkel, have fallen behind the brasher political-decision making of countries including Britain, Israel and the United States, as well as nimbler governments like Chile.
- Difference in approach: Those nations adopted strong-arm tactics to ensure a variety of doses, quickly seeking out independent deals with manufacturers. Most European nations, meanwhile, stuck with the E.U.'s more measured approach and finalized deals later. The sticking point, according to accounts from insiders, was price. Another wrinkle came later, when Europe watched mass rollouts of the vaccine produced by Pfizer and developed by BioNTech — a German company — take place in the United States, Britain and Israel, before the EMA had even approved the drug.
- Inherent weakness of EU: The EMA has now approved four different vaccines. But there have been significant concerns among national regulators about AstraZeneca, which was initially restricted in Germany and elsewhere for use on those over 65 because of limited data for that age group. The move was reversed after results from England, where the vaccine is being widely used, were studied. Leaders saw other countries pausing the drug and made the decision to do so as well, rather than listen to global public health bodies. In some ways, the situation is a product of the strengths and weaknesses of the E.U. It is a 27-member bloc, with a larger and more varied population than the United States, as well as a bigger economy. When it moves in unison, it can be powerful, but its decision-making is often unwieldy and unpredictable.
- The E.U. was, for example, largely able to procure cheaper vaccine doses than the United States through its heft — a significant financial move, considering the supply needed. But its consensus-based decision-making process has contributed to the slow delivery of those doses, potentially negating any economic benefits. Only a handful of E.U. states broke with the bloc’s vaccine orthodoxy. Hungary has vaccinated some of its citizens with Russia’s Sputnik V and Chinese vaccines, citing the need for a broader range than the EMA was approving. Other nations are moving to follow suit, albeit slowly.
- Knowledge centre:
- European Union - The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 27 member states (earlier 28) that are located primarily in Europe. Its members have a combined area of 4,233,255.3 km2 and a total population of about 44.7 crore. The EU has developed an internal single market through a standardised system of laws that apply in all member states in those matters. EU ensures free movement of people, goods, services and capital within the internal market. EU follows common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. Passport controls have been abolished for travel within the Schengen Area. A monetary union was established in 1999, coming into full force in 2002, and is composed of 19 EU member states which use the euro currency. It is a sui generis system.
- Brexit - It is an abbreviation for the term “British exit”, referring to the action of Britain withdrawing from the European Union (EU). Following a UK-wide referendum in June 2016, in which 52% voted in favour of leaving the EU and 48% voted to remain a member, Prime Minister David Cameron resigned. On 29 March 2017, the new British Government led by Theresa May formally notified the EU of the country's intention to withdraw, beginning the Brexit process. The withdrawal was originally scheduled for 29 March 2019. It was delayed by deadlock in the British Parliament after the June 2017 general election, which resulted in a hung parliament in which the Conservatives lost their majority but remained the largest party. This deadlock led to three extensions of the Article 50 process. The deadlock was resolved after a subsequent general election was held in December 2019. In that election, Conservatives led by Boris Johnson won an overall majority of 80 seats. After that, the British Parliament finally ratified the withdrawal agreement. The UK left the EU at the end of 31 January 2020 CET (11 p.m. GMT). This began a transition period that ended on 31 December 2020 CET (11 p.m. GMT).
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