After Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe accused World Health Organisation of its pressing the panic button over 2009 influenza A/H1N1 pandemic, Ukraine’s Parliament’s health committee has initiated the investigation on anti-flu drug Tamiflu purchases by Tymoshenko’s government.
The global panic led to millions spent from state budgets on stockpiling antiviral medication, hundreds of which, as it turned out, remained unused.
“Ukraine has not fully used Tamiflu which was imported by Tymoshenko’s government for budget costs. There was used only some 60 percent,” said Tetyana Bakhteeva, chairwoman of Parliament’s health committee.
Ukraine’s Health Ministry on Oct. 30, 2009 confirmed Ukraine’s first swine flu-related death.
According to Bakhteeva, only some 10 percent of the drug was used in Mykolayiv oblast, some 11 percent in Odesa, Luhansk oblasts, some 15 percent in Zakarpattia, Sumy, Kyiv oblasts, 23 percent in Ternopil oblast, some 28 percent in Kherson oblast, 38 percent in Cherkasy oblast, and 50 percent in Lviv oblast. There are some 800, 000 packs of Tamiflu which expiration date has already passed. The interim commission was created to investigate the validity of the Health ministry’s last year purchases.
“The drug [Tamiflu] was bought for some Hr. 240-400 per a pack, while the release price was some 5-6 euro per pack [Hr. 50-60], Bakhteeva said.
In 2009, ‘Optima-Farm’ drug company produced 1.350 packs of Tamiflu, 750 packs of which were imported and 600 packs were bought from Ukrainian distributor company. In 2009 the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, assigned from the state budget Hr. 1 billion on prevention and management of the swine flu virus
Ukraine’s Health Ministry on Oct. 30, 2009 confirmed Ukraine’s first swine flu-related death, and the government ordered Ukraine’s schools closed and banned public gatherings – including election campaign rallies – for at least three weeks.
A/H1N1 global influenza pandemic was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) in June 2009. On June 7, the investigation made by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (http://thebureauinvestigates.com/tag/tamiflu/), the British Medical Journal revealed that scientists advising the World Health Organisation on A/H1N1 pandemic had financial links to the drug companies which profited from the global tizzy.
