CRONYISM TRUMPS PUBLIC WELFARE IN VACCINE PURCHASE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 GUATEMALA 000269 SIPDIS DEPT FOR USAID LAC/CAM KSEIFERT E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2019 TAGS: PGOV SOCI TBIO PREL GT SUBJECT: CRONYISM TRUMPS PUBLIC WELFARE IN VACCINE PURCHASE Classified By: POLOFF Mordica Simpson for reasons 1.4(b,d). Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) After 25 years of purchasing vaccines through the Pan-American Health Organization's (PAHO) Revolving Fund (RF),the GOG recently awarded a contract to purchase seven types of vaccines and many high costs drugs from a local pharmaceutical company (J.I. Cohen) that was a major donor to the Colom presidential campaign; the bidding process was full of irregularities and Cohen was the only bidder. Purchasing the vaccines from this campaign contributor would result in higher cost to the GOG since PAHO allows Central American governments to realize economies of scale, and ensures quality. Under public criticism, the GOG backed off partially and said it would continue to purchase the majority of its vaccines for 2009 through PAHO, but would honor part of its contract with Cohen and would solicit bids for 2010. This incident raised concerns among the public and the donor community that the Colom Administration is prepared to steer contracts inappropriately to its campaign funders even in areas where it could have an impact on children's health and mortality. End Summary. Lower Prices, Higher Quality Through PAHO -------------- ¶2. (U) The Pan-American Health Organization's (PAHO) Revolving Fund (RF) was established in 1977 as a procurement mechanism for essential vaccines. PAHO negotiates the purchase price of vaccines in bulk directly with vaccine producers, allowing Latin American countries to achieve economies of scale. The result is that the RF gives Latin American countries access to vaccines at the lowest available price while maintaining international quality standards. According to Minister of Health Celso Cerezo, purchasing vaccines through the RF reduces costs by up to 80 percent. The majority of Latin American countries purchase vaccines through the RF. GOG's Rationale Raises Doubts -------------- ¶3. (SBU) After 25 years of having purchased vaccines through the RF, in January 2009 the GOG posted a "Request for Expressions of Interest" on "Guatecompras," an Internet-based government procurement system. The announcement was posted under the security and arms section of Guatecompras, rather than under public health, making it difficult to find and leading many to believe the GOG intended to keep bidders not related to the GOG out. The GOG solicited bids to purchase seven types of vaccines and many expensive medicines, even though it had already approved a 2009 purchase order through PAHO in December 2008. Vice Minister of Health Juan Felipe Garcia claimed that the GOG made this decision because purchasing vaccines through the RF violated Guatemala's procurement law which, he wrongly asserted, requires the government to first solicit local bids. Local pharmaceutical company J.I. Cohen was the only bidder, making the process non-competitive. J.I. Cohen's owner, Jack Irving Cohen, was a major contributor to President Colom's 2007 campaign. Colom's Private Secretary, Gustavo Alejos, has minority interests in the pharmaceutical company, as does his brother, President of Congress Roberto Alejos. The Alejos Brothers are part of Colom's inner circle. ¶4. (C) The Ambassador asked the President about the vaccines on March 9. The President was uncomfortable with the discussion, but insisted that the GOG would revisit the Qdiscussion, but insisted that the GOG would revisit the vaccine bid issue. The DCM also raised our concern over this irregular purchase in greater detail with Gustavo and Roberto Alejos on March 13. Gustavo Alejos claimed that he was not involved in the decision to stop purchasing the vaccines from PAHO and had ordered the bidding process annulled when it became such a problem for the Presidency. He said, however, that a new bid would be held. Gustavo Alejos said that the press had overstated his involvement with J.I. Cohen and said that Vice President Espada had made the decision to stop purchasing vaccines through PAHO. Alejos acknowledged that the way this operation was handled had created the perception of an inside deal, but did not back down on the decision to purchase vaccines through a public tender rather than PAHO. ¶5. (SBU) According to Center for Disease Control (CDC) Country Representative and USAID Director of Health and Education Programs, there would likely be significant negative repercussions should the GOG purchase vaccines from J.I. Cohen rather than the RF. These repercussions include the higher cost to the GOG, possibly lower quality of the GUATEMALA 00000269 002 OF 002 vaccines, and the inability to quickly meet demand should acute vaccine shortages occur. According to CDC and AID, several of the diseases covered by the seven vaccines, such as measles, diphtheria, and pertussis, can be deadly to children. They also concluded that the GOG's decision increases the risk of a negative impact on child vaccination rates, which in turn could lead to higher rates of disease and child mortality. ¶6. (U) The keystones of the Colom Administration's political agenda are social welfare, poverty alleviation, and rural development programs. Its flagship Conditional Cash Transfer program ("My Family Progresses") provides a monthly stipend to families in exchange (in part) for keeping up on their children's vaccinations. Press and Members of Congress criticized the GOG's decision as being at odds with its social welfare agenda. In response to public scrutiny, Vice President Rafael Espada (a heart surgeon) defended the contract with campaign contributor Cohen during a press conference March 3. Espada stated that PAHO could not guarantee the quality of vaccines and highlighted that the organization had previously provided medicine that was not registered with the Ministry of Health. He also indicated that the GOG might present a complaint to the Public Ministry (Attorney General's Office) against all former Health Ministers who had signed agreements with PAHO over the past 25 years. In response to Espada's statements, PAHO's Guatemala Office issued a press release stating that the quality of the vaccines purchased through the RF is indeed verified. GOG Backpedals Under Public Scrutiny -------------- ¶7. (U) In response to press reports highlighting the bid, the Congressional Health Committee summoned Minister Cerezo to a hearing to provide an explanation of the GOG's decision. In sworn testimony, Cerezo contradicted Espada's earlier statements and acknowledged that PAHO provides high quality vaccines. Espada backpedaled in the face of public scrutiny, claiming the media took his comments out of context. Cerezo also told Congress that the GOG would continue to purchase all vaccines from PAHO with the exception of the influenza vaccine, which would be purchased from J.I. Cohen. According to Health Vice Minister Garcia, however, in August the GOG will once again solicit bids from local companies to provide the government's supply of vaccines for next year, supposedly to comply with the country's procurement law. The GOG will proceed with plans to purchase expensive drugs, such as HIV retro-viral drugs, from J.I. Cohen. The press report that J.I. Cohen ill charge ten times as much for the HIV drugs as does PAHO. Vice Minister Garcia defended this exorbitant expense by saying that the GOG would get a guaranteed regular supply from Cohen. Comment -------------- ¶8. (C) The Colom Administration's decision to steer in a nontransparent manner a contract for children's immunization and HIV drugs to a campaign contributor shocked the international donor community and the Guatemalan public. Vice President Espada and Minister of Health Cerezo's attempts to defend the decision only deepened public distrust and earned days of blistering criticism in the media. The Colom Administration only partially backed down from this decision leaving the Guatemalan public and the donor community with the impression that despite Colom's social Qcommunity with the impression that despite Colom's social welfare rhetoric, his collaborators are prepared to take unnecessary risks with the health of Guatemala's children in order to reward a major campaign contributor. McFarland