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Men waiting outside a vaccination center in Manchester
Photo: Jon Super / action press
SPIEGEL:
Ms. Castro, it was barely two years ago that Covid-19 turned the world upside down.
Now there is a new threat of monkeypox.
Are we better prepared this time?
Rosa Castro:
A lot has actually happened in the past two years to be better prepared for such health crises.
Last September, the EU Commission created Hera (Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority), a new authority that is supposed to recognize emergency situations and react more quickly on behalf of all member states.
However, little has been seen of this so far.
Although the WHO recently declared an international health emergency because of monkeypox, there is now going it alone and mistrust again.
SPIEGEL:
What does that mean specifically?
Castro:
For example, Hera has so far ordered around 160,000 doses of vaccine against monkeypox, but France alone has ordered 250,000, for example.
It was a conscious decision that individual countries in addition to the EU can also order vaccines.
But of course this leads to a race in which big and richer countries have better cards.
Others can't even afford it.
SPIEGEL:
What is the point of another organization if everyone continues as before?
Castro:
The founding was a balancing act.
Unlike the EMA or the EU health authority ECDC, Hera is not independent.
So far, Hera has been subordinate to the EU Commission as a subordinate authority.
Many European governments were afraid of giving up power.
I can partly understand that.
But if we don't get over the small-state system, we'll face the same problems over and over again.
SPIEGEL:
In your opinion, how could things be better?
Castro:
The EU already wants to become a health union.
Hera could help a lot with that.
First of all, it should be upgraded to an independent institution.
Then better, common procurement rules are needed.
In return, transparency is necessary so that trust can be built in Hera and the public can also understand the contracts.
With BARDA, the USA has long had a comparable authority that independently prepares for emergencies and then procures the necessary medication.
Because timely and long-term precautions were taken, there are now vaccines and medicines against smallpox.
However, this discussion about structures is only part of the problem.
SPIEGEL:
What's the problem?
Castro:
To this day we do not have a good overview of how many people have been vaccinated internationally.
And with monkeypox, too, everything depends on what the pharmaceutical industry can and wants to deliver.
Currently, with Bavarian Nordic, there is only one company that produces the central vaccine for half the world at a single location.
In my view, the EU and individual member states should exert pressure to use compulsory licenses if necessary.
Discussions are currently under way.
But there is still too much consideration for the drug companies.
They received public money for the development of vaccines and medicines, including Bavarian Nordic, by the way.
MIRROR:
What does all this mean for those affected and people who belong to a risk group?
Castro:
At the moment there are reports from all over Europe of men traveling from Italy or Spain to France, for example, to have the chance to be vaccinated there.
In addition, photos of people with hereditary skin diseases who were photographed riding the subway and then falsely labeled as monkeypox patients and verbally abused are circulating on social media.
These are stories that scare me.
There is little knowledge, but a great deal of prejudice.
SPIEGEL:
Is the stigmatization perhaps also due to the fact that 97 percent of the cases in Europe so far have occurred in men who have sex with men?
Castro:
That seems very obvious.
But these people are particularly vulnerable - and not particularly dangerous to others.
Of course, reaching out to vulnerable groups without stigmatizing them is a fine line to walk.
However, looking back over the past few weeks, I am not sure that we in Europe have learned from HIV.
We need more enlightenment.
SPIEGEL:
Inequality in access to health care is not only a problem in Europe, but especially outside of it.
In African countries, monkeypox has been occurring regionally for more than 30 years.
Nevertheless, these states do not even appear in the discussion at the moment.
Castro:
This also shows how narrow-mindedness and national solo efforts endanger us all.
Monkeypox could probably have been contained in Africa long ago if the world community had reliably supported affected regions with vaccines.
If you ignore them again now, it only shows how short-term we unfortunately still think.
We must learn that we can only survive health crises together.
So far we have been fortunate that monkeypox is not occurring on the same scale as Corona.
There are still a few thousand cases.
We should see this situation as an opportunity to improve as much as possible now.
If not out of solidarity, then out of sheer self-interest.
This is our second chance after Covid.
And I'm not sure we're getting a third.
This contribution is part of the Global Society project
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