The German biotechnological company-developer of the Vaccine from Coronavirus Biontech appreciated the ability to refuse patents for the drug. This is reported by the Frankfurter Allgemeine SonnTagszeitung edition with reference to the company’s representative.
The company agrees to abandon patents, but this measure will be temporary and will last until the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. The representative of the company stressed that while Biontech is ready not to initiate claims against those who try to “symit” the drug.
At the end of April, pharmaceutical companies appealed to the US government with a call not to abandon the patent for the vaccine against coronavirus. As noted, the lobbyists of the pharmaceuticals conducted several private meetings with officials from the sphere of trade, as well as with representatives of the White House. In the course of them, they indicated that new vaccine production technologies can get into the hands of the authorities of Russia and China.
In October 2020, India and South Africa called on states producing vaccines from coronavirus, temporarily abandon their patent for them. This step was supposed to provide access to the vaccine residents of poor countries. The World Health Organization and more than 60 countries supported this initiative. However, the administration of the former US President Donald Trump together with the European Union, Great Britain and Switzerland opposed the proposed measure.