French pharmaceuticals giant Sanofi refuses to give Philippines refund for used dengue vaccine
Last month the firm did agreed to pay US$31 million for leftover doses of Dengvaxia, which was suspended over health concerns
French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi on Monday told the Philippines it would not refund the cost of used doses of a dengue vaccine after the vaccination programme was suspended over health concerns.
The Philippines had asked Sanofi to refund a total 3.2 billion pesos (US$62 million) spent on the public vaccination programme after the company said the vaccine could worsen symptoms in some cases, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said.
Sanofi last month agreed to reimburse the Philippine government 1.6 billion pesos (US$31 million) for leftover doses of Dengvaxia. But it said Monday it would not pay for doses that were already used.
“Agreeing to refund the used doses of Dengvaxia would imply that the vaccine is ineffective, which is not the case,” Sanofi Pasteur said in a statement.
The refund offered for unused Dengvaxia doses was not due to safety or quality concerns but simply to show that the company was cooperating with Manila, it added.