Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri signed a law regulating the use of medical products for combating COVID-19 and sent it to the Council of Ministers to initiate its implementation.
The law includes exceptional medical cases where the Lebanese state, represented by the Ministry of Public Health, is compelled to issue scientific recommendations or medical approvals. The law clarifies that the Ministry of Public Health will provide recommendations and approvals regarding the emergency use of medical products prior to obtaining comprehensive representation certifications, as well as the use of registered medical products in emergency therapeutic applications not covered in the full registration.
The law delineates the exceptional cases that could cause significant harm to citizens on a national level, such as epidemics and infectious diseases, chemical and nuclear poisoning incidents.
The Lebanese Parliament approved the law on Friday, aimed at regulating the use of medical products in emergency situations for drugs and vaccines, a step that opens the door for obtaining new COVID-19 vaccines. This legislative move follows the requirement from the manufacturer of the vaccine for the law to be enacted before shipping vaccines to Lebanon, thereby seeking to absolve the company from responsibility since the "Pfizer" vaccine received emergency use authorization only after the Lebanese Ministry of Health approved its use.
Notably, this law paves the way for Lebanon to contract for the importation of additional vaccines beyond "Pfizer."
In a statement following the session, Deputy Assem Araji, head of the parliamentary health committee, emphasized that the parliament made significant progress by passing the vaccine law. He pointed out that, had it not been enacted, it would have been impossible for Lebanon to acquire vaccines from any global company, noting that the law applies to all companies, not just Pfizer.
Araji explained that the law safeguards the rights of vaccine-exporting companies, stating that if any side effects occur from the vaccine and someone wishes to file a complaint, the company will be protected since it obtained emergency authorization for vaccine production and could potentially receive final approval within two years.
Araji confirmed that Pfizer will begin delivering medications in the second week of February and mentioned that Lebanon could import a substantial number of vaccines from AstraZeneca, which promised to export the vaccine in March.
