Poland will not join EC vaccine deal with Pfizer, health minister says

Poland will not participate in the agreement worked out between the European Commission (EC) and Covid vaccine developer Pfizer to address falling demand, the Polish health minister has said.

Last Friday, the EC announced that, acting on behalf of EU countries, it had reached an agreement with BioNTech/Pfizer as regards Covid-19 vaccines, including as to the possibility of reducing their supply and extending the length of time in which member states will be able to take their delivery.

On Thursday, Adam Niedzielski, the health minister, commented on the deal in an interview with PAP.

"We still believe that the conditions negotiated by the EC... with Pfizer are absolutely insufficient, unsatisfactory and we do not join this agreement," he said.

Niedzielski said that Pfizer in its proposal, tentatively accepted by the EC, demands a fee for doses that are to be reduced, which is around half of the price that Poland pays for the delivered vaccines.

In his opinion, this is "not just dishonest conduct of business negotiations, but a scandal."

"We're still in a dispute," Niedzielski said.

Millions of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccines that Poland has contracted are expected to be left unused as the coronavirus pandemic has been largely contained and demand for vaccinations has dropped dramatically.