11/18/21, 10:40 AM Pfizer has power to 'silence' governments and 'maximize profits', consumer group alleges - ABC News

Pfizer has power to 'silence' governments and 'maximize profits',

consumer group alleges
By business reporter David Chau

Posted Wed 20 Oct 2021 at 12:11am , updated Wed 20 Oct 2021 at 9:11pm

Pfizer's revenue surged to $US19 billion in the June quarter, almost doubling in a year.
(AP: Ryan Remiorz)

COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer Pfizer has been accused of hiding behind a veil of secrecy to
profiteer during the "worst public health crisis" in over 100 years.

That was the key criticism made by Public Citizen, a Key points:

consumer rights group, which published a
report containing leaked Pfizer contracts with the
United States, United Kingdom, European Commission,
Albania, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Dominican Republic
and Peru.
The company is able to change its vaccine
delivery schedule (without penalty)
Brazil can't accept COVID vaccine donations
from other nations, without Pfizer's consent

In some of the contracts (some of which were in draft Pfizer raised the annual sales forecast for
its COVID-19 vaccines to $US33.5b (up 29 per
or final form), Pfizer had the power to block countries
cent)
from donating their COVID-19 vaccines to other
countries, unilaterally change delivery schedules if
there was a shortage, and demand that public assets be used as collateral.

If there was a dispute, it would be not be decided by a court (a public forum), according to some of the
contracts. Instead, they stated, any disagreements would be resolved through private arbitration under
New York law.

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11/18/21, 10:40 AM Pfizer has power to 'silence' governments and 'maximize profits', consumer group alleges - ABC News

Catch up on the main COVID-19 news from November 18 with a look back at our blog.

"The contracts offer a rare glimpse into the power one pharmaceutical corporation has gained to silence
governments, throttle supply, shift risk and maximise profits in the worst public health crisis in a
century," Zain Rizvi, the author of the report, said.

"Pfizer’s demands have generated outrage around the world, slowing purchase
agreements and even pushing back the delivery schedule of vaccines."

Some countries signed contracts, waiving "immunity against [Pfizer's] precautionary seizure of any of

[their] assets", including Brazil, Chile, Colombia and the Dominican Republic.

The Brazilian government was prohibited from making "any public announcement concerning the
existence, subject matter or terms of [the] agreement" or commenting about its relationship with Pfizer,
unless it had the company's prior written consent.

Read more about the spread of COVID-19 in Australia:

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Unclear arrangements
Since August, the Australian government has had a "vaccine swap" deal with Singapore and Britain, and it
has purchased 1 million Pfizer doses from Poland.

But it is unclear whether the federal government needed to ask permission from Pfizer before it could
enter into those deals.

Nor is it clear if the government signed a contract saying that Australia would forfeit its right to rely on
sovereign immunity if Pfizer was to make a claim to seize assets (a clause which appeared in contracts
with several nations).

The ABC put those questions to the Department of Health.

In an emailed statement, the department said: "The details of the Advance Purchase Agreement (APA)
with Pfizer for the purchase of their COVID-19 vaccine are commercial-in-confidence."

On Wednesday, 70 per cent of Australians aged 16 and older had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19,
a key milestone in the federal government's plan to reopen the country.

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11/18/21, 10:40 AM Pfizer has power to 'silence' governments and 'maximize profits', consumer group alleges - ABC News

Before that, the government was heavily criticised for the slow vaccine rollout and the decision from the
Health Minister's office to not meet with Pfizer's executives until August 4, months after it was first
approached by the company.

Documents released under Freedom of Information laws showed that health department officials did not
want to sign a confidentiality agreement before they met with Pfizer representatives because it was "not
usual practice".

There were other reasons for the delayed vaccine uptake, including general vaccine hesitancy and
concerns about the AstraZeneca jab and recipients' extremely rare chance of experiencing a blood clot.

Do we really need booster vaccines for COVID-19?

Company will 'naturally get blamed'

Pfizer has tight control over the supply of its vaccines, even after they are delivered.

For instance, Brazil is not allowed to buy or accept donations of Pfizer doses from another nation without
Pfizer's approval, nor can it sell, donate or transport its vaccines outside the country.

There is a reasonable explanation for that requirement to be included in Pfizer's contracts, according to
the University of Queensland's biotech and pharmaceutical expert, Trent Munro.

"When pharmaceutical companies release a product, they generally lose control of where it's stored," he
said.

"But they also need to ensure something doesn't happen that can impact the
potency of the product.

"If, for example, the vaccine gets spoiled or doesn't work properly, liability will come back to the company.
They'd naturally get blamed even if they're not in control of distribution."

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11/18/21, 10:40 AM Pfizer has power to 'silence' governments and 'maximize profits', consumer group alleges - ABC News

Even when a country has ordered Pfizer's vaccines and is waiting for them to arrive, the company has the
power to change the vaccine delivery schedule, without consulting the country or suffering a penalty.
That term appears in its contracts with Albania, Brazil and Colombia.

The contracts that Brazil, Chile, Colombia and the Dominican Republic signed were wide enough to cover
situations where they were unable to rely on sovereign immunity if they breached the agreement and
Pfizer wanted to come after their state assets.

Read more about the vaccine rollout:

Vaccine bookings boom ahead of NT's vaccine mandate
Queensland has hit its first major COVID vaccine milestone

Half the world has received at least one vaccine dose, but that figure hides a darker truth

Those nations promised to "expressly and irrevocably waive any right of immunity which either it or its
assets may have or acquire in the future". 

Public Citizen also said it looked at contracts where governments had to "'indemnify, defend and hold
harmless Pfizer from and against any and all suits, claims, actions, demands, damages, costs and
expenses related to vaccine intellectual property".

Pfizer has 'no intention in interfering' in diplomacy

The ABC asked Pfizer why it imposed conditions which prevented countries like Brazil from accepting or
buying vaccines from other countries and why it included clauses allowing the company to seize state
assets in contracts.

In a statement, a spokesperson said Pfizer was "committed to the principle of equity and broad vaccine
access in order to combat this devastating pandemic".

"Pfizer has a deep sense of responsibility to help ensure that our vaccine is made available to all," the
statement said.

"As the pandemic has evolved, Pfizer has continued to partner with governments to ensure equitable
allocation of doses, and responded to requests for equitable distribution of those doses.

"This has occurred through donations and dose sharing agreements in multiple countries, including with
Australia, New Zealand and its Pacific neighbours.

"In the context of bilateral negotiations, Pfizer has no intention of interfering with any country's
diplomatic, military, or culturally significant assets, and any suggestion to the contrary is untrue. 

"Our focus continues to be helping countries find solutions which give both sides the comfort that an
appropriate balance of risks between the parties has been attained."

The company said that indemnification clauses were common when supplying vaccines during public
health emergencies.

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"We seek the same kind of indemnity and liability protections in all of the countries that have asked to
purchase our vaccine, consistent with the local applicable laws to create the appropriate risk protection
for all involved," the statement said.

"In markets that do not have the legal or legislative protections that are available in the United States, we
work with governments to find mutually agreeable solutions, including contractual indemnity clauses."

Pfizer also said, as of October 17, it had delivered more than 1.8 billion doses of the vaccine to 146
countries and territories around the world and had pledged to deliver 2 billion doses of the vaccine to
low and middle-income countries in 2021 and 2022.

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