Arab Canada News

News

Pfizer files lawsuit against Poland over "COVID-19" vaccine

Pfizer files lawsuit against Poland over "COVID-19" vaccine

By Omayma othmani

Published: November 25, 2023

The American pharmaceutical company "Pfizer" escalated its dispute with Poland over the excess doses of the "COVID-19" vaccine that were ordered under a massive contract with the European Union.

The company is suing the state over what it claims is an incomplete contract for "COVID-19" vaccines.

This forced Warsaw to purchase tens of millions of doses under a controversial contract signed by the European Commission with "Pfizer" in 2021, on behalf of EU countries.

"Pfizer" is demanding $1.5 billion in compensation for 60 million doses rejected by the Polish government, after it stopped receiving vaccines in April 2022.

The European Union also ended up ordering 1.1 billion doses under the contract, burdening the countries with a vaccine surplus as the "COVID-19" pandemic subsided.

The EU Prosecutor's Office has already announced an investigation into the purchase process amid allegations of corruption and secret behind-the-scenes deals, while Polish Health Minister Katarzyna Szwika warned that other EU countries might be next to face legal action.

Warsaw also questioned the controversial role of the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, in the Pfizer deal after it was revealed she communicated privately for weeks with the company's CEO, Albert Bourla, during contract negotiations.

Nevertheless, the European Commission claimed last year that no text messages with the head of the major pharmaceutical company regarding multi-billion-dollar executive deals were found.

The first hearing in Pfizer's lawsuit is scheduled in Brussels on December 6.

Earlier this year, the pharmaceutical company offered the EU more time to complete minimum vaccine purchases under the binding contract, but insisted the European bloc must pay in full for the number of doses specified in the contract.

Poland has since refused to sign the revised EU agreement with the pharmaceutical company.

Szwika told TVN24 on Wednesday that there is some hope to resolve Pfizer's lawsuit "in a positive way."

A Pfizer spokesperson told Politico that the company decided to proceed with the lawsuit "after a long breach of the contract and a period of good faith discussions between the parties."

Comments

Related

Weather

Today

Thursday, 03 July 2025

Loading...
icon --°C

--°C

--°C

  • --%
  • -- kmh
  • --%