Pfizer is demanding PLN 6 billion from Poland. The trial in Brussels has started

Last year, Poland resigned from receiving 60 million coronavirus vaccines produced by Pfizer. The then Minister of Health, Adam Niedzielski, explained in April 2022 that the epidemic situation in the world is better and there is no longer such a high demand for vaccines.

Poland has not received 60 million vaccines, Pfizer wants payment

According to him, the argument for refusing to accept the vaccine – despite the agreement in force – was the fact that the negotiations regarding the purchase of vaccines were conducted by the European Commission. The contract was concluded between the European Commission and the producers, and Poland was not a direct party to it. The pharmaceutical company did not agree with this position and sued Poland for failure to fulfill the contract vaccine.

According to “Dziennik Gazeta Prawna”, the company is demanding PLN 6 billion from our country. On Tuesday, December 5, a short hearing in the Pfizer v. Poland case was held before the Brussels Court of First Instance. The trial is taking place in Brussels because the contract for joint purchases of vaccines by European Union countries was negotiated based on Belgian law.

Proceedings of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office

Last month, shortly after Poland’s elections, Pfizer said it was taking Warsaw to court over the outstanding payment, which POLITICO estimated at about 1.2 billion euros based on reported vaccine prices. The co-creator of the vaccine, the German company BioNTech, also joined this procedure.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the EU’s financial crime watchdog, announced in a terse press release last October that it had opened an investigation into vaccine procurement. She did not specify who the investigation concerns. Politico reported that an important thread in the case would be the role of Ursula von der Leyen.