Duterte wants Sanofi held accountable for Dengvaxia mess

A nurse prepares a dengue vaccine for public school kids in this file photo —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

President Rodrigo Duterte wanted Sanofi Pasteur, manufacturer of Dengvaxia, accountable for the dengue vaccine mess.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the President was waiting for the result of the investigation of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Senate regarding the Dengvaxia scare.

Roque, however, said Duterte wanted Sanofi accountable.

“He (Duterte) stands by the recommendation of the DOH to hold Sanofi responsible. We want, by way of mere… by way of minimum, a refund of what we have paid already for the Dengvaxia,”  he said.

Roque said Duterte wanted a refund of the P3.5 billion the government had spent for an anti-dengue vaccine.

“He wants a refund of what we had paid because there was concealment of a material fact and that is that children who have not developed dengue may acquire the disease three to six years after the vaccination. That was not a known fact when government decided to embark on the vaccination program,” he said.

The Department of Health (DOH) has suspended the anti-dengue vaccination program following a disclosure by the manufacturer of the vaccine, French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Pasteur, that it could pose more risk and severe infections to the person who got vaccinated. /jpv

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