It is a controversy that is shaking up the pharmaceutical sector. The French health authorities announced on Tuesday, April 23, the cessation of the marketing of an anti-flu vaccine from the pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, the latter accusing them of having set a price too low.
“We would like to inform you of the withdrawal from the market of the Efluelda vaccine marketed by the Sanofi laboratory in the coming weeks,” announced the General Directorate of Health, which depends on the ministry, in a message to pharmacists.
This vaccine is reserved for those over 65, because it has been specifically developed to protect people most at risk of complications. It is, in fact, four times more dosed than the classic vaccine developed by Sanofi against influenza, called VaxigripTetra.
Marketing stopped
The pharmaceutical group justified its choice to stop the marketing of Efluelda, by shifting the responsibility to the health authorities whom it accuses of having set a price too low.
“The authorities have decided to establish its new price at a level lower than the production and distribution costs of this vaccine,” responded Sanofi in a press release. The group, which also highlights the fact of having invested 50 million euros to maintain part of the production of the vaccine in France, “regrets this decision which makes it impossible to make this vaccine available”.
This confrontation takes place in a context of debates on the real benefits of Efluelda compared to traditional influenza vaccines. A series of studies have established the greatest effectiveness of this vaccine in people at risk, but to a relatively limited extent.
“We have more than 10 years of studies including numerous clinical studies demonstrating the superiority of Efluelda vs standard dose vaccines against influenza, hospitalizations attributable to influenza, and its cardiorespiratory complications,” insisted Sanofi to the AFP.
Not being convinced, the French health authorities therefore refuse, unlike countries like the United States, to recommend this vaccine more than another for those over 65, which in their view justifies not paying for it. more expensive.
Prices too low
This debate is also part of a broader context where the pharmaceutical industry regularly believes that France sets prices for medicines that are too low. In this regard, Sanofi obtained the support on Tuesday of a major pharmacists’ union, the Federation of Pharmaceutical Unions of France (FSPF).
“In front of the camera, the government assures that it is doing everything possible to guarantee access to health products; in fact, it is stubbornly persisting in an ever more restrictive pricing policy and in a low-cost health paradigm,” accused the union in a press release.
Asked by AFP, the Ministry of Health did not react. This decision should, in any case, not affect the quantity of flu vaccines available since Sanofi promises to offer its classic vaccine as a replacement to pharmacies which had pre-ordered Efluelda.