Two years ago at University Hospital Coventry, Margaret Keenan received the first ever Covid-19 vaccine outside of trials thanks to...

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Hi John,
Two years ago today at University Hospital Coventry, Margaret Keenan received the first ever Covid-19 vaccine outside of trials thanks to the efforts of scientists and NHS workers. The rapid deployment of vaccines across the UK turned the tide of the pandemic and saved thousands of lives.

But the stark reality is that more than a million lives globally could have been saved if people in the global south had fair access to vaccines, and 75% of people in low-income countries remain without a single dose to this day.

While pharma companies were busy selling the majority of doses to rich countries, a handful of those rich countries, under pressure from the pharmaceutical lobby, made sure supply remained in the control of a few big corporations. Instead of acting to curb pharma monopolies and use all available facilities to make vaccines across the world, the UK, the EU and Switzerland worked to block efforts by global south countries to achieve vaccine equity.

After the current system led to such inequality during the pandemic, the need for a new pharma system is obvious. That’s why South Africa’s mRNA vaccine hub is such a beacon of hope. Back in September, we visited this remarkable project that has reverse-engineered Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine and is already sharing knowledge and technology with middle and low-income countries. But the speed of this work is hampered by Moderna’s total failure to co-operate.

The potential of the South African vaccine hub for global health is too big to allow Moderna to get away with this. Can you join our call on the company to drop its opposition to the vaccine hub and instead co-operate to put global public health first?
Defend the mRNA hub – take action now ([link removed])

Earlier this year Moderna filed patents in South Africa, raising fears they will seek to block the work of the vaccine hub, despite the support of the World Health Organisation. In recent months the company has pledged not to enforce these - but only when it comes to Covid-19 vaccines. Yet the success of the hub depends on expanding mRNA research into other conditions with significant potential impact on global health.

We know the stakes are high. Pfizer and Moderna, the two pharmaceutical companies which launched mRNA-based vaccines for Covid-19, made record-breaking profits on the back of this novel technology. In fact, they are so invested in keeping their monopolies over it that Moderna is actually suing Pfizer for their use of mRNA. The hypocrisy is staggering, given the pivotal role public funding and public research bodies played in developing the science behind these vaccines.

In September, our delegation to South Africa saw the crucial work that the mRNA hub is doing right now – not only to bypass big pharma’s monopolistic model for research and development but also to share knowledge and best practice across the world. Scientific teams from Brazil to Indonesia to Ukraine are already arriving at the hub for training, as the countries ignored by pharma corporations during the pandemic get ready to respond to health crises without the help of rich but unreliable countries. But civil society groups on the ground also recognise the danger that corporations like Moderna pose for the future of the project. This is about justice, not charity.

Can you join our call to tell Moderna to stop obstructing this vital project by sharing its technology and withdrawing its patent applications in South Africa?
Hands off the mRNA hub – sign the petition ([link removed])

The news that the first Covid-19 vaccine had been given two years ago should be a moment to celebrate human ingenuity and cooperation. But with many millions of people still yet to be offered this life-saving medical advance, it now also stands as a symbol of how our global economic system puts the pursuit of profit ahead of the protection of human life.

Together, through championing projects like the South Africa vaccine hub, and standing up to corporations like Moderna, we can change that.
Thanks for everything you’re doing,
Alena Ivanova,
Pharma campaigner, Global Justice Now

More info

1. 'Vaccine inequality cost more than 1 million lives' ([link removed]) , Nature, 2 November 2022
2. ‘Like copying a Louis Vuitton handbag’: big pharma hits out at Africa’s replica Covid vaccine ([link removed]) , Guardian, 5 Oct 2022
3. Moderna patent application raises fears for Africa COVID vaccine hub ([link removed]) , Reuters, 17 Feb 2022
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