Statement by Bill and Melinda Gates on the GAVI Alliance's Announcement of Vaccine Industry Offers for Lower-Priced Life-Saving Vaccines

SEATTLE, June 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Bill and Melinda Gates, co-chairs of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, issued the following statement on the GAVI Alliance's announcement of new offers from developing country and multinational vaccine manufacturers to lower prices.

"One of the highest priorities of the Gates Foundation is to increase access to life-saving vaccines for children in the world's poorest countries. The reductions in prices offered by developing country and multinational vaccine manufacturers will enable the GAVI Alliance to take a significant step toward ensuring that children living in poor countries have the same access to life-saving vaccines as children living in rich countries.

"We're particularly excited about the offers for rotavirus vaccine because the shock of learning that more than 500,000 children die each year from a preventable disease that causes severe diarrhea is what drew us to work in global health in the first place. With these offers, GAVI will be able to make even greater use of donor commitments - now and in the future - to significantly increase the number of children it can protect from deadly yet preventable diseases."