The French government has said it would be unacceptable for global pharmaceutical company Sanofi to reserve the first doses of a Covid-19 vaccine for the US market.
Sanofi is a France-based company. A month ago it signed a letter of intent with British multinational GSK to develop a vaccine for Covid-19.
At the time, the companies said they planned to initiate Phase I clinical trials in the second half of 2020 and, if successful, aimed to complete the development required for availability by the second half of 2021.
Deputy Finance Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher said she contacted Sanofi on Wednesday, after reading comments from the CEO suggesting that the US market would be prioritised once a Covid-19 vaccine was developed.
“It would be unacceptable for Sanofi to reserve its Covid-19 vaccine as a priority, if it were to find one, to one country or another for financial reason,” she said on Thursday.
“As the President of the Republic said, if a vaccine is discovered, we very much hope that it will be a global public good.”
Sanofi says its cooperation with the US’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) will allow it to initiate production as soon as possible.
The company said it was exploring similar opportunities within Europe.
“We have always been committed in these unprecedented circumstances to make our vaccine accessible to everyone,” the pharmaceutical giant said in a statement.
“Sanofi benefits from a diversified footprint around the world.
“We are having very constructive conversations with the EU institutions and the French and German government amongst others.”
