Sanofi to compensate for ‘death, any other case’
By Camille A. Aguinaldo
FRENCH PHARMACEUTICAL firm Sanofi Pasteur on Monday committed to providing compensation for “death or any other case” among patients who were administered the controversial Dengvaxia vaccine.
Sanofi has also reimbursed to the Department of Health (DoH) P1.16 billion for unused dengue vaccines.
Senators also quizzed incumbent and former DoH officials regarding the process that led to the implementation of the immunization program involving dengue vaccines in 2016.
Senator Richard J. Gordon, chair of the Senate blue ribbon committee, grilled officials of the Disease Prevention and Control Bureau (DPCB) and physicians Maria Joyce U. Ducusin and Mario S Baquilod on the recommendation to include the vaccines in the government’s National Dengue Prevention Program.
Mr. Baquilod said Dr. Rosalind Vianzon, the dengue program manager at the time of the vaccine purchase, told him to make a recommendation which he thereafter submitted to Ms. Ducusin’s office. He also said the rising number of dengue cases at the time also prompted him to issue a document.
It was disclosed that the recommendation document was a requirement for a special allotment order release amounting to P3.5 billion for the vaccine program.
Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian for his part questioned former health secretary Janette L. Garin for continuing the purchase of the vaccines despite the advice of a technical working group to conduct a pilot testing first.
Ms. Garin said she knew about the proposal for pilot implementation when there was a discussion with other officials regarding four other vaccines proposals for funding. But she said she would have to check with DoH officials regarding the actual document of the technical working group.
For his part, former health secretary Enrique T. Ona testified that he would not implement the government’s anti-dengue vaccine program the way it was handled by his successor while there were still issues about the vaccine.
“It should not have been implemented the way it was done, meaning targeting millions of children, because the basis for the issues that were being raised were still a big question mark,” he said, citing studies too.
He also reiterated his previous statement that the leadership after his term as DoH chief was “solely responsible” for what he called a “major health nightmare in the country today.”
Ms. Garin, the DoH chief at the time the vaccine program was implemented in 2016, insisted that the procurement of the vaccines was not rushed.
