MSF bemoans the fact that the issue of high vaccine prices is not on the agenda of key Africa conference

As the first-ever Ministerial-level meeting on immunization in Africa gets underway in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the international medical humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) expressed dismay that the serious issue of skyrocketing vaccine prices available in adequate supply was not on the agenda, despite being one of the key barriers to protecting more children against killer diseases.

“In our projects, MSF has struggled to introduce new vaccines due to their high price. We’re frustrated that we’re unable to provide some of the most critical vaccines to our patients because they remain priced out of reach, or not available in needed supply, and we hear the same frustration from governments consistently repeated in various global discussions,” said Myriam Henkens, international medical coordinator at MSF. “If vaccine prices continue to spiral out of control, we will continue to see countries in Africa and around the world faced with difficult decisions about which deadly diseases they can and can’t afford to protect their children against. Ministers at this conference literally can’t afford to waste this opportunity to again speak out against high prices and push for change,” Dr Henkens added.

Now 68 times more expensive to vaccinate children than in 2001