Pfizer (PFE) has announced the termination of new clinical trials in Russia and the transfer of income from Russia to the needs of Ukraine, joining other major pharmaceutical companies.
“Today we are announcing that Pfizer will immediately donate all profits from our Russian subsidiary to causes that provide direct humanitarian assistance to the people of Ukraine,” the company said in a statement.
“Our medicines are medicines, let alone [an] Like the iPhone Pro or the new Mac,” Pfizer CEO Albert Burla Julie Hyman of Yahoo Finance said at SXSW on Monday.
Sanctions against Russia do not cover medicines, although economic sanctions may make it difficult to deliver them.
“We cannot stop the flow of our drugs to Russia,” Burla said. “With sanctions, medicines are always excluded,” he added, citing economic sanctions against Iran and North Korea.
“Stopping drug delivery, including for the treatment of cancer or cardiovascular disease, will result in significant patient suffering and potential loss of life, especially among children and the elderly,” the company said.
KHARKIV, UKRAINE – MARCH 13: Ileana looks at her 29-year-old son Sergei, a volunteer who was hit by a bullet and is in a hospital in Kharkiv, Ukraine on March 13, 2022, as Russian attacks continue. (Photo by Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Although the company will not start new trials, current trials will continue. And patients who have already been registered will continue to take their medications, Burla said.
The company will work with the FDA and other regulatory agencies to move ongoing clinical trials outside of Russia, Pfizer said.
The continuation of medical care under sanctions is required by international humanitarian law and supported by the United Nations. The issue has received a lot of attention as Russia continues to destroy hospitals and strike areas close to refugees.
Burla noted that the sanctions will hit not only Vladimir Putin, but also Russia itself. “The sanctions were designed to put pressure on the regime. Unfortunately, all other Russians will feel this pressure,” Burla said.
Subscribe to Anjalee at Twitter @AnjKhem
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Follow Yahoo Finance at Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, facebook, flipboardas well as LinkedIn