Pharmacies lobby government to allow private parties to buy and sell vaccines

The pharmaceutical industry negotiates with the government an authorization to be able to acquire vaccines and start marketing them to the public in private. So that he knows Bugle from industry sources, who confirmed that last Thursday the laboratories at a meeting that brought together pharmacies and drugstore associations discussed the concrete possibility of purchasing three million doses of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine and a plan has been drawn up to be presented to the Ministry of Health, which should give its approval in order to be able to implement it and thus increase the number of doses reaching the country.

Laboratories, pharmacies and drugstores they could get an initial stock three million doses, which would be equivalent to one and a half million vaccines, at around US $ 26 each, no taxes involved. So, taking the official dollar at $ 95 – the last listing of Banco Nación-, the initial investment of the business community would be around US $ 78 million, although added the tax component, that number could double and climb to $ 156 million, or about $ 52 each serving that is brought.

Follow this line, the minimum cost for each person vaccinated with two doses would be $ 4,940, without taxes, or $ 9,880 by adding this supplement. Considering the local and commercial distribution margin, they estimate that a price at which they could be sold to the public, in private in pharmacies, would be around $ 80 per dose -50% more than the value at which it is acquired, to date $ 7,600. Yes indeed, Anyone wishing to be vaccinated without waiting for an appointment granted by the State, you should pay around $ 15,200 to apply both doses. It wouldn’t be free, of course, but people who can make an effort economically would think outside the box and leave their space to those who don’t have the resources to buy them.

In the area They have been in dialogue with the government since the start of the year, when Ginés González García was Minister of Health. And they think his departure could open a door for negotiation. Although aware that the privatization of the vaccination system would represent a radical turning point in the health policy of the Alberto Fernández government, they believe that in a context where the doses arrived in smaller quantities than imagined and in the face of a possible regrowth that could From the fall, La Rosada could twist its arm and allow private purchases, which would also reduce state spending.

The initiative has broad membership in the business community, say the sources consulted. A year after the start of the quarantine in the country, many companies continue to work decimated in terms of staff, they assure that the level of absenteeism has increased noticeably and that the home office has advantages but does not replace work in situ .

That he could at least vaccinate at-risk employeesThey consider that this would be an advance, and much more than if all employees could be vaccinated, who are not strategic personnel and who would remain on the current vaccination schedule until the end. “We would pay for the necessary vaccines, without hesitation, if we were to invest in ensuring the return to work of our workers,” they comment from a multinational.

In government for now they relativize the possibility of opening the game in private and enable the marketing of vaccines. And they ensure that this position transcends ideology. “It is impossible for the pharmaceutical sector to access it. The laboratories only sell to national states. If they have problems selling and distributing the vaccine in countries like France, Italy or Germany, even more to private individuals, ”say executive sources. However, they admit that China has a high dose stock, although “They are the most expensive on the market”.

There is a track record around the world that emboldens those who encourage that part of the vaccination comes from the hands of private parties, or that at least pharmacies can be allowed to vaccinate. By case, State The United States has cleared the sector to apply the dose in pharmacies and it is expected that from mid to the end of April they can start market them directly. Canada, Australia and the UK are other examples of pharmacy vaccination started by those promoting the idea nationally. In Mexico, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador welcomed this possibility that pharmacies buy vaccines.

Since pharmaceutical sector, moreover, they ensure that, even without the impact suffered by other industries, there was a significant decline in pandemic revenue in 2020, which was particularly visible in small neighborhood stores. “Many believe that because of Covid-19, pharmacies worked more and this was not the case, since people stopped buying drugs and did not consult specialists,” they argue.

This week, the industry plan that will be presented to the national government will be finalized, while in parallel dialogue with Sinopharm intermediaries will intensify to go buy doses if at any time official approval is obtained. In principle, three million doses are those who ensure to bring pharmacies, although they assure that this number could be bigger, since they do not only enter into dialogue with the Chinese laboratory, but also with other vaccine developers around the world.

DD