|
 "Indemnity will be granted," said one of the sources. "If one
company gets it then all of them get it."
India invited Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson in April to sell
their vaccines after infections rocketed. However, no deal has been
signed.
Pfizer has not sold to any country without obtaining indemnity
against legal action over any adverse effects of their product.
India has not granted indemnity to any COVID-19 vaccine maker, but
the sources, who requested anonymity, said the government was having
a change of heart.
The government has already met one of Pfizer's other key demands by
dropping a requirement that foreign vaccines undergo local trials.
Another government official said he expected Pfizer vaccines to be
delivered in August. He said initial recipients of foreign shots
could be monitored, before a mass roll-out "once we are sure of its
efficacy on Indians."
Neither the foreign or health ministries responded to a request for
comment.
Pfizer declined to comment on its discussions with the Indian
government but said it sought indemnity wherever it supplied its
vaccine.
[to top of second column] |
 "We seek the same kind of
indemnity and liability protections in all of
the countries that have asked to purchase our
vaccine, consistent with the local applicable
laws to create the appropriate risk protection
for all involved," a Pfizer spokeswoman said in
an email to Reuters. One of the
sources said India was negotiating prices of $10-$12 per dose for
foreign shots. The European Union is paying 15.5 euros ($18.86) per
dose for the Pfizer vaccine developed with Germany's BioNTech.
The Pfizer spokeswoman said the company had offered doses to many
countries at a not-for-profit price.
India has administered more than 239 million vaccine doses - mainly
a licensed version of the AstraZeneca drug produced locally - the
most in the world after China and the United States. But with a
population of 1.35 billion people, India's vaccination rate is much
lower than many countries.
($1 = 0.8220 euros)
(Writing by Krishna N. Das; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
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