Pharmaceutical multinationals committed on March 19 to delivering a COVID-19 vaccine “everywhere in the world” within 12 to 18 months. Dozens of clinical trials are advancing to create affordable screening kits, treatments, and vaccines against the coronavirus, which had infected over 230,000 people and claimed more than 9,800 lives worldwide at the time, per AFP data.
“We will ensure, even if produced elsewhere, that the vaccine reaches everyone who needs it worldwide,” affirmed Paul Stoffels, Vice President of Johnson & Johnson’s Executive Committee. “This is an industry-wide promise,” he stated during a videoconference hosted by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA).
Streamlined regulatory processes, ample resources, and public-private partnerships help mitigate the financial risks of massive R&D investments, Stoffels explained.
However, safety cannot be compromised, so clinical trials and data reviews must follow rigorous timelines, cautioned executives from major firms. “It will take 12 to 18 months for a market-authorized vaccine”, said David Loew, Executive Vice President at Sanofi and Head of Sanofi Pasteur.
Post-approval, scaling production for global distribution poses another hurdle. "We're talking billions of people—it's a huge challenge," Loew emphasized.
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