Romanian Social Democrat Head Pushes For Setting Up Of National Pharmaceutical Co

According to Geoana, who is running for president on November 22, the setting up of a national pharmaceutical company, which will have stock market-listed Antibiotice Iasi as core division and will also include Cantacuzino Institute and state-owned pharmaceutical company Sanevit Arad, could serve as example of strategic company partly listed on the stock market to attract additional funds.

Geoana stressed Romania must not depend on imports of strategic medicines when faced with the risk of swine flu pandemic, adding Romania’s capacity to produce medicines is directly linked to its national security system.

He also said the swine flu is a lesson for everybody, pointing out Romania cannot afford to become dependent on imports of strategic medicines when faced with risk of pandemic.

Romania’s Health Ministry has scrapped plans to buy one million doses of vaccine from global producers because they would have reached Romania in the first quarter of 2010 and the country needed them faster, until it made its own vaccine.

Cantacuzino Institute already has a stock of 1.3 million doses of vaccine, which will be used on medical staff, highschool and university students and border police staff. The institute said it can make about 5 million doses by the end of the year, which would cover about a quarter of the country’s population.

Romania has registered 555 cases of AH1N1 infections since May when the first case of infection with the flu virus was reported, and 174 of them are undergoing treatment, while the rest are cured, Streinu-Cercel said Monday. The country has also put all its hospitals under quarantine to help prevent the spread of the virus.