Flu News Friday, 2/18/2022

February 7, 2022

To mitigate future health crises in Africa, including the looming threat of an influenza pandemic, vaccines must be made on the continent. The Pandemic Action Network released a call-to-action letter addressing European Union (EU) and African Union (AU) leaders ahead of the EU-AU Summit being held February 17-18, 2022. The letter calls for sustained investments towards vaccine R&D and manufacturing in the region, along with support for African Vaccine Acquisition Trust, Partnership for Africa Vaccine Manufacturing, and Africa Medical Supplies Platform initiative to help the continent avoid supply chain failures experienced during the current pandemic. The call-to-action has been co-signed by more than 35 organizations. Read it here.

World Health Organization / February 3, 2022

Although disease burden data should be considered in vaccine policy-making, a survey conducted by WHO revealed some authors face obstacles in having their findings included in the decision-making process. While authors from 14 of 20 countries surveyed shared their influenza disease burden findings to government officials, authors from only 5 countries reported having those results considered in vaccine policy forums. Read WHO’s press report to learn about strategies for better communicating influenza disease burden findings to policymakers.

Swaminathan, S. et al., Nature, / February 9th-10th, 2022

Vaccine development for many endemic and pandemic pathogens has been inhibited by concerns around market potential and investment returns, despite these vaccines being powerful tools for protecting populations. Authors of a recent Nature article argue that to achieve equitable access to biomedical innovations, the current ecosystem must instead be motivated by serving the global public interest. The 2011 WHO Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework is used as a notable example of a benefit-sharing approach between governments and industry. Read the article to learn more about the authors’ “holistic vision” for an equitable R&D ecosystem.