My Matter, by Marta, Alvaro and Ruth

Let me speak about any kind of vaccine, such as bird flu or Ebola vaccine. Usually governments are convinced from pharmaceutical companies to buy a lot of vaccines to heal their citizens.  Pharmaceutical trademarks create social warning to force every government to buy their vaccines. They count on means of communication’s collaboration and some interested government. Without requiring, governments paid a lot of taxpayer’s money to the pharmaceutical firms.

For example, many countries bought millions of vaccines to heal the bird flu pandemic because of pharmaceutical experts said bird flu epidemic might cause a lot of victims, but when the bird flu was under control, doctor experts which help to the citizens said bird flu was less dangerous than common influenza, it was less lethal in the people than it was expected by pharmaceutical firms. Because of that, millions of vaccines weren’t used and probably have already expired and we must recycle them.

Nowadays, it's possible that this issue is happening with Ebola virus. It is possible  pharmaceutical firms already have Ebola vaccine but they don't put it on sale because they don't get the necessary profit.

Perhaps the pharmaceutical companies don't want to move the vaccine against Ebola to the affected countries of Africa due to the low economic amount of money  they would receive.

Currently pharmaceutical trademarks increase their profits with rich countries illness and for this reason they give more importance and money to the First World than to the Third World problems.

They spend more time creating new drugs for new mental disorders than fighting against old illnesses by which mainly poor people are being seriously affected.

Govermments have to ensure good health to people, but monetary interest is harder, and they don´t take enough measures, for this reason people even die of illnesses which in fact have a cure.

In conclusion it is sad that we only know and decide what to do when a disease is contracted in advanced countries.

But for sure, Health is a universal right and must cover everyone.

Ruth, Alvaro and Marta.