During the 2013-2014 season, the Cantacuzino Institute in Bucharest will create the flu vaccine, according to Romania's Health Minister Eugen Nicolaescu. The Ministry ordered 1.5 million doses, having a budget of RON 8 million (around EUR 1.81 million), allowing the institute to get up and running again.

The minister added that the Ministry also has another RON 2 million (EUR 450,000) in store for the Cantacuzino Institute for other projects.

Reopening the Institute and restarting local vaccine production was a priority for the Health Ministry back in September 2012.

The year 2012 was the first in which the free immunization campaign against the flu has not used the vaccines from the Cantacuzino Institute. In January 2012, many batches of flu vaccine which were produced at the institute were withdrawn from the market due to low levels of strain B, and the ampoule line production was closed.

The Cantacuzino Institute, which is one of the most acclaimed producers in the world of immunology, began declining in February 2010 after the National Drug Agency (ANM) withdrew the institute's marketing authorization for intravenous medicines, including vaccines, because  the standard of good manufacturing practice certification on the products had expired.

Ioana Toader, ioana.toader@romania-insider.com 

 (photo source: sxc.hu)