WHO chief: Ebola vaccine was never developed 'because it only affected poor African countries

WHO chief: Ebola vaccine was never developed 'because it only affected poor African countries

Source

Speaking to the WHO’s regional committee for Africa in Benin, she said: “Ebola emerged nearly four decades ago. Why are clinicians still empty-handed, with no vaccines and no cure?"

She continued: “Because Ebola has historically been confined to poor African nations. The R&D incentive is virtually non-existent. A profit-driven industry does not invest in products for markets that cannot pay.”

Wow, what a shocker, not.

There is still no Ebola vaccine 40 years after the disease first emerged because it previously affected only poor African nations, the head of the World Health Organisation has said.

In unusually strident comments, Dr Margaret Chan, the director-general of the WHO, attacked drug companies and said that the reason clinicians were “empty-handed” was because “a profit-driven industry does not invest in products for markets that cannot pay”.

I think most figured it boiled down that anyway. It takes a more widespread outbreak for anyone to even care outside of that area. Where's Bill Gates when he's needed after all doesn't help with these kinds of humanitarian issues? Oh wait, can't cure or have a vaccination for a disease that helps to keep the populations down especially in that area of the world.

If anyone wants to get mad over Ebola, get mad over this, coupled with incompetence seen with Duncan and nurses in the US.

The WHO has itself faced criticism for its allegedly sluggish response to the Ebola crisis, and the organisation’s regional office in Africa has been described as “not competent” by the co-discoverer of Ebola Professor, Peter Piot.

Other sources-see here- mention: Speaking of competence: As Professor Piot discovered Ebola, he goes on to call for vaccinations now and not before, because it was considered a non issue.

Source

Surely Big Pharma(namely GlaxoSmithKline* ) might be considering to get in it on now, but not because of mass outcry or US outbreaks. Though, Probably only make money if it's needed on a mass scale.

*"Is This Who You Want Manufacturing Your “Ebola Vaccine”?" see here

While the news isn't shocking, i must applaud Dr Margaret Chan for standing up and saying it how it is.



Still, it doesn't excuse the fact that the WHO could have independently funded an investigation into potential Ebola vaccines...

a reply to: daaskapital



Exactly, they can't just play the blame card they need to accept they all had a hand in this.

Why should the WHO (which is seriously underfunded) spend money on a vaccine for a disease that up until recently, only killed a few thousand people? There's plenty of diseases that kill millions every year (malaria, tuberculosis, dozens of parasitic diseases, and just plain bad water-borne illness) that could benefit from more research.

The problem with Ebola and Marburg and the like is that we now live in a global village and even poor people are somehow managing to get on planes and be half way around the world before their contagious illnesses are obvious.

I wonder what this world will look like when Ebola is as ubiquitous as HIV, except that instead of hiding behind medications that make it a chronic illness, it would kill within a week and spread within families?

Hmm, If coporations that develop this vaccine are only in for the money then I guess it makes sense, but to me, this is more than just about how much profit could be generated, what ever happened to morals, and standing up for our fellow human beings. IDK this world is so screwed up. But I guess its always been like this, sadly

The "statements" look like classic controlled opposition.

I think a failed vaccine/cure test started this years outbreak.

So now they do all they can to get people to automatically believe something else.

Classic, and obvious.

a reply to: signalfire

They should spend money on the investigation of vaccines because they are the WHO. They are complaining about a lack of professional responsibility in developing aid for deadly viruses. Well, they are also involved in the community. They should also pull some of the weight. They have hundreds of millions of dollars in budget. It wouldn't hurt to throw a couple of million into vaccine research for not only Ebola, but other deadly viruses too.

They are just pointing the finger first to get the blame off of themselves.

They are no better than the CDC in that respect. Did they use the phrase "Breech of protocol" also?

He who smelt it and all that. They knew better than anyone.

a reply to: dreamingawake

This is the WHO.. WORLD Health Org. See.. capitalism doesn't just exist in the US.

a reply to: dreamingawake

This is quite a big "duh" moment. I can't even begin to count how many people in real life I've met who say Africa's problems are Africa's problems.

We all live in a capitalist society so is this in the least bit surprising?

Anyone who is shocked by this is naive.

a reply to: dreamingawake

Dr. Chan should direct her angst as to why her country still eat bat and monkey.


It's always about what others can do for them rather than what they can do for themselves.

a reply to: daaskapital

From what I've heard, they're broke. I have no way of knowing for sure but every time they're an outbreak somewhere, if they're the ones who are supposed to deal with it, I can see that they might be underfunded and undermanned.

I'm sure the US spends far more on killing people than it does on saving them, and likely they're the major funders of WHO.

Edit because I found this: WHO budget cuts

a reply to: dreamingawake

The WHO chief is a little late to the party:

Major pharmaceutical companies have shown little interest in developing effective treatments for diseases such as this. There’s no incentive for the commercial risks of research and companies naturally prefer to focus on diseases that can sustain large markets of wealthy regular users.

...

Let’s consider the most advanced drug: ZMapp, which is produced by Mapp Biopharmaceuticals and is the experimental treatment the fuss has been about. The incentive for developing ZMapp was clearly not its broad commercial potential. Instead, it is for developing capacity for biodefence.

How Western national interest drives Ebola drug development

Which was published back in August.

Drugmakers to join forces to make millions of Ebola vaccine doses

Now corporations are investing and they will want a return. And since the poor African countries can't pay, will we see more cases in the west?