Is access to Ebola vaccine limited? Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) on Monday (September 23rd) accused the World Health Organization (WHO) of "rationing" the Merck laboratory vaccine, the only one used to date to fight the spread of the Ebola virus in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"One of the major problems today is that in practice, the vaccine is rationed by the World Health Organization, and that too few people at risk are now protected," MSF wrote in a statement. communicated. Denouncing the "opacity" of the organization, MSF calls for "the creation of an independent international coordinating committee", to "improve immunization coordination", and "to ensure transparency on the management of stocks and the sharing of data".

"We do not limit access to the vaccine"

Asked by AFP, the WHO has denied any limitation of access to the vaccine. "We are working closely with the DRC government to reach as many communities and individuals as possible in the epidemic zone, we are not limiting access to the vaccine, but we are putting in place a strategy recommended by a committee. independent experts, as agreed with the DRC government, "said Dr Mike Ryan, director of WHO's emergency programs.

Declared 1 August 2018, the 10th outbreak of Ebola haemorrhagic fever on Congolese soil killed more than 2,100 people. Last July, WHO raised the Ebola threat to the rank of "public health emergency of international concern". A total of 225,000 people were vaccinated, "but this number is still largely insufficient," according to MSF.

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"Obscure" restrictions

"Up to 2,000 - 2,500 people could be vaccinated every day, against a current rate of 500 to 1,000 people," said in the statement the director of operations of MSF, Isabelle Defourny. "MSF's efforts to expand access to immunization in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (...) have come up against the tight control imposed by WHO on the supply of vaccines."

"The reasons behind these restrictions remain unclear," says the NGO, for whom the current vaccine "has demonstrated its safety and effectiveness." The NGO sweeps the argument of a supply crisis: "Merck has just declared that in addition to the 245 000 doses already delivered to the WHO, they were ready to send 190 000 other doses if necessary, and that 650 000 more would be made available in the next six to 18 months. "

Introduction of a second vaccine

The MSF press release was published amid controversy over the introduction of a second Ebola vaccine. "The second vaccine is under review," said the coordinator of the Ebola response of the Congolese Ministry of Health, Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe. "We continue with the first vaccine in places where there is the epidemic."

"The second vaccine will probably be used outside the epidemic areas to protect the population," he added in remarks reported by the actualité actualité.cd website. Former Minister of Health Oly Ilunga resigned on July 22, denouncing attempts to introduce a second vaccine "by actors who have demonstrated a manifest lack of ethics."

With AFP