EU sues AstraZeneca over delayed COVID-19 vaccine supply News
whitesession / Pixabay
EU sues AstraZeneca over delayed COVID-19 vaccine supply

Stefan De Keersmaecker, the European Commission‘s Public Health and Food Safety Spokesperson, said Monday that Brussels has initiated legal proceedings against AstraZeneca over its delayed supply of COVID-19 vaccines.

AstraZeneca delivered 50 million fewer vaccinations to the EU than stipulated in the contract between AstraZeneca and the EU.

The Advance Purchase Agreement was published last year with some redactions. It stipulated that AstraZeneca would provide 400 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to the EU. 80 million of those doses were to be provided in 2021’s first quarter, but according to the European Commission, only 30 million were provided.

AstraZeneca responded to the news of the legal proceedings in a statement, saying it “has fully complied with the Advance Purchase Agreement with the European Commission and will strongly defend itself in court.”

AstraZeneca said about the delays:

Vaccines are difficult to manufacture, as evidenced by the supply challenges several companies are facing in Europe and around the world. We are making progress addressing the technical challenges and our output is improving, but the production cycle of a vaccine is very long which means these improvements take time to result in increased finished vaccine doses.

The EU has endorsed the AstraZeneca vaccine for use. Although some concerns abounded about its side effects, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that it “considers that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh its risks and recommends that vaccinations continue.” The European Medicine Agency echoed the WHO’s conclusion.

THIS DAY @ LAW

US Supreme Court ruled Indians not US citizens

On November 3, 1884, the US Supreme Court ruled in Elk v. Wilkins that John Elk, an American Indian who had tried to vote in a federal election in Omaha, Nebraska, was not a US citizen entitled to the protection of the 14th and 15th Amendments of the US Constitution. Native Americans became eligible for citizenship in 1887 under the Dawes Act, but only in 1924, under the Indian Citizenship Act, were all Native Americans born in the US made citizens.

Last public execution at Tyburn Gallows in London

On November 3, 1783, the last public execution took place at Tyburn Gallows in London, when John Austin was hanged for highway robbery. From the hanging of William Fitz Osburn in 1196 until Austin's execution, Tyburn served as London's primary location for public executions.

Learn more about the trial of John Austin.