The EU Commission will not extend the contract with Astrazeneca. Thierry Brenton announced this now. The dispute with the vaccine manufacturer has consequences.
Update from May 11, 7:05 p.m.: The EU Commission wants to force the delivery of the member states with corona vaccine from the manufacturer Astrazeneca. “We want the court to order the company to deliver 90 million additional cans (in the second quarter),” a spokesman for the Brussels authority said on Tuesday. Then, with a total of 120 million cans in the first half of the year, the manufacturer would have delivered as much as it originally contractually promised for the first three months.
Astrazeneca had only delivered 30 million doses of vaccine to the EU in the first quarter, citing production problems. For the second quarter, the British-Swedish company announced 70 million cans instead of the promised 180 million. According to information from the Commission, however, with only ten million cans delivered in April, it fell even further behind these promises.
Astrazeneca rejects EU demand
Two weeks ago, Brussels therefore took legal action. The commission spokesman said the aim is not to punish Astrazeneca or seek compensation, but to “make sure the cans are delivered”. If a fine encourages the company to meet its obligations, it is an option.
The Belgian judiciary is responsible for the case. The first substantive hearing in the proceedings is scheduled for Wednesday, May 26th. Astrazeneca rejects the EU’s demands: The contract only stipulates that the company should make the best possible effort to achieve the agreed goals.
Astrazeneca crash: EU ends cooperation with vaccine manufacturer
First report from May 9, 2021
Munich – The European Union puts an end to Astrazeneca *. Again and again there had been a fuss about the Corona * vaccine. The current dispute between the EU and the producer is apparently due to delivery delays.
Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Brenton announced on Sunday that the Commission will not renew the contract, which expires in June. The day before, the EU had announced that it would buy 1.8 million cans of Biontech * vaccine from US pharmaceutical company Pfizer.
The Astrazeneca vaccine was repeatedly suspected of promoting dangerous thromboses. In many cases, however, correlations could not be confirmed. However, it was proven when a German woman died *.
Astrazeneca vaccine fuss: Suspected thrombosis cases are not the reason for contract termination
In the meantime, several European countries, including Germany, have therefore imposed a vaccination ban on the vaccine. After a review by the EU, however, it was mostly released again. The past complications are not the reason for the end of the contract.
In the first quarter, Astrazeneca actually made only 30 percent of the promised deliveries available, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had already criticized at the beginning of August. Apparently there were disputes about the export.
Astrazenca-Zoff with the EU: Von der Leyen already threatened in March – “You are fulfilling your contract with the EU”
“We have the option of prohibiting a planned export. That is the message to Astrazeneca: You first fulfill your contract with Europe before you start delivering to other countries “, von der Leyen told the newspapers of the Funke media group in this context,” we want a structured approach to resolve the controversies in Set gear. “
The solution to the controversy was evidently not achieved to everyone’s satisfaction. As of June, the EU will no longer work with Astrazeneca. In Germany, however, the vaccine plays an important role in the vaccination campaign. The prioritization was only recently lifted for the remedy. Young, healthy people who are exposed to an increased risk can also be vaccinated with it in general practitioners’ practices. This was a decisive acceleration for vaccination progress – especially the immunization of a large part of the population. When the existing cans are used up, there will probably be no more new ones. * Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
List of rubric lists: © Patrick Pleul / dpa
