Sanofi Hits the Skids in Manila Over Dengue Vaccine
In a stunning turn of events, the Philippine authorities slapped French giant Sanofi with a $2,000 fine and temporarily revoked its product registration for the controversial Dengvaxia vaccine. The move comes amid growing worries that the shot might actually make dengue worse for some kids.
What Sparked the Fallout?
- Nearly 734,000 children aged nine and older got the jab in a nationwide campaign.
- A congressional probe and a criminal inquiry were launched to uncover how this risky situation slipped past the system.
- Sanofi issued a warning last month that the vaccine could aggravate the disease in certain cases.
Regulatory Response
Health Secretary Francisco Duque told Reuters that Sanofi was hit with a sanction and its product registration certificate was held up. The Philippine Food and Drugs Administration determined the company violated post‑marketing surveillance rules, meaning they didn’t keep tabs on the vaccine’s real‑world safety as required.
Financial Fallout
Last year, the government poured 3.5 billion pesos (about $70.2 million) into the Dengvaxia rollout—a big‑money bet to cut the 200,000 annual dengue cases.
Voices from the Field
Sanofi hasn’t replied yet, leaving parties to wonder how quickly the global pharma giant will respond to the regulatory backlash.
At its core, this saga shows that even the cleanest medical intentions can run into trouble when oversight slips—and that the door to public health accountability never really closes.
