Markus Green, the Vice President, Assistant General Counsel at Pfizer, Inc. has spoken out about the expected impact of the pharmaceutical company’s new initiative of providing medicines on a not-for-profit basis to 45 lower-income countries, including Rwanda. Last week, Pfizer announced that it will will provide all its current and future patent-protected medicines and vaccines available in the U.S or European Union on a not-for-profit basis to 45 lower-income countries. Rwanda, Ghana, Malawi, Senegal and Uganda are the first five countries to commit to join the Accord, and health officials in these countries will help identify and resolve hurdles beyond supply to inform the roll out in all 45 lower-income countries. In an exclusive interview with The New Times last week, Green said the deal will improve access to medicines for people in African countries and will give them the possibility of starting to use preventative medication – something that does not even factor-out in many African countries currently. He noted that in many African countries that he has visited, it is uncommon for people to pay for medication unless when they are admittedly sick, a factor that is as a result of the difficulty in accessing the medicines. “But if you create a situation where those drugs are accessible and it is not a burden on them; and they don’t have to make a choice between food and taking a statin for cholesterol, they can take those medications that will prolong their lives,” he said. “With this, I think what you will see is a healthier continent, I think you will see the life expectancy increase over time, I think you will see a better work force, I think you will see less child births ending in disaster because of poor nutrition,” he added. He highlighted the need for more companies from the West to do such initiatives that support people from lower-income countries. “The challenge is how do we engage all institutions; how do we get more companies to do what Pfizer is doing to get individuals to pay attention to this issue; how do we get folks galvanized around this very solvable issue and meaningful issue,” he said. “I think that sometimes there is a disconnect between how people see themselves and how they see others. So, the more we can shine this spotlight on humanity, the more people will see their reflection in that light and know that we are them and they are us,” he added. Green noted that the initiative is Pfizer’s commitment to making sure that everyone has access to life saving medication and an acknowledgement that there is a health equity gap globally and everyone needs to do their part. Pfizer will also collaborate participant countries to identify quick and efficient regulatory pathways and procurement processes to reduce the longer amount of time it can take to make new medicines and vaccines available in these countries. Under the accord, Pfizer has committed to provide 23 medicines and vaccines that treat infectious diseases, certain cancers, and rare and inflammatory diseases. “Making these medicines and vaccines more readily available has the potential to treat non-communicable and infectious diseases that claim the lives of nearly one million people each year in these countries and chronic diseases that significantly impact quality of life for at least half a million more. As Pfizer launches new medicines and vaccines, those products will also be included in the Accord portfolio on a not-for-profit basis,” read a statement from Pfizer. While speaking during a press conference in Davos at the World Economic Forum (WEF) last week, President Paul Kagame welcomed the initiative, noting that rapid and affordable access to the most advanced medicines and vaccines is a cornerstone of global health equity. “Rwanda is very happy to take part in accord together with partner countries and we look forward to adding these life-saving medicines and vaccines to our public health,” he said.
