Senate probers are poised to press charges against Sanofi Pasteur, the French pharmaceutical company that supplied the “risky” P3.5-billion Dengvaxia anti-dengue vaccine administered by the Department of Health (DOH) to over 280,000 schoolchildren “without passing through World Health Organization prequalifications.”
“One of the findings [by Senate probers] is this project was spend-driven,” said Sen. Richard J. Gordon, chairman of the Blue Ribbon Committee spearheading the Senate inquiry which opened on Monday. “I am a lawyer. A big case can be filed against Sanofi,” Gordon said in the midst of grilling DOH officials. “These deal was [rushed],” he added.
Citing initial findings, Gordon noted that the multibillion-peso dengue-vaccine purchase was “done in a hasty manner.” The senator also voiced concerns that “if left unchecked, there will be more dead victims.”
“These deal was rushed…too fast [in its] implementation,” Gordon said.
Former Health Secretary Enrique T. Ona, testifying at the hearing, told senators the Dengvaxia immunization program should not have been readily implemented targeting 1 million schoolchildren, saying there remained “big question marks” when the program was carried out.
For instance, Ona said there were “three other vaccines still being tested” at the time it was implemented. He recalled a 2011 study, but said “no conclusion on the dengue vaccine was derived at that time.”
The Dengvaxia inquiry was triggered by three related resolutions separately filed by Gordon and senators Joseph Victor G. Ejercito and Grace Poe.
Ejercito’s Resolution 557 called for the inquiry into the dengue-immunization program of the DOH, amid clinical findings on Dengvaxia vaccine’s “adverse effects to its recipients.” Poe’s Resolution 563, on the other hand, asked the Senate to “investigate the reported danger of the school-based dengue-vaccination program of the DOH with the objective of crafting measures that will ensure safety and efficacy of government-sponsored immunization programs…and hold accountable pertinent government officials and pharmaceutical manufacturers in this regard.”
Gordon asked Secretary Francisco T. Duque III to ensure that Sanofi will pay for the treatment of vaccinated schoolchildren that suffered the ill-effects of the Dengvaxia.
“They should set aside resources for the treatment of affected children,” Gordon said, adding the DOH and Sanofi should be in continued talks on “how to help these people.”
For its part, Sanofi official Thomas Triomphe assured lawmakers that the company is “holding itself to highest compliance and will shoulder the cost of casualties if proven to be caused by vaccination, adding Sanofi would be “willing to reimburse.”
At the same time, DOH officials told senators they will conduct continued “school based” surveillance of Dengvaxia vaccine recipients for prompt response, if needed.
Before adjourning the hearing, Gordon announced the Blue Ribbon Committee will resume the hearing on February 6, after which it is expected to submit a report endorsing passage of remedial legislation, to prevent a repeat of the incident.