Izzie's story

My name is Isabelle, and I am based in the UK. I have cystic fibrosis. 

It has been almost eight months since I went into isolation to shield from Covid-19. Due to my cystic fibrosis (CF) I fall into the extremely vulnerable, high risk category. CF is a life threatening, chronic condition, causing passageways in my lungs and digestive system to become blocked with thick, sticky secretions, over time leading to fatal lung damage. COVID-19 places a serious risk to my already damaged lungs. 

Due to the pandemic all my CF care has been moved to online video clinics and phone calls. This means I have had to manage my illness alone, leaving me constantly terrified of getting unwell.  

This period has been extremely lonely and devastating for me. The nature of the virus and having to avoid people and places has had a big impact on my mental health. 

Unless sufficient treatments or vaccines are developed and available, I will remain shielding and socially distancing until a vaccine is available.  

Public money is being poured into researching, developing and manufacturing potential vaccine candidates in a way we’ve never seen before. The UK government has put tens of millions of pounds into the AstraZeneca vaccine, for example - and the US government has put in over $1bn! Taxpayers are covering all the costs of this vaccine. 

And while AstraZeneca have agreed that the vaccine will be available at ‘cost price’ during the pandemic, it turns out that this will only be until July 2021! We have no clarity over what we’ll be paying long term after this point when AstraZeneca will have control over the price. Drug companies have proven time and again that when they hold the power, they’ll charge astronomical prices in order to maximise profit. 

We need governments to take action to make sure vaccines will be affordable and accessible to people who need them wherever they live in the world. Whilst people continue to get sick and die, losing loved ones and their livelihoods, we know from experience that big pharma won’t think twice about profiting on our suffering. Instead, the UK government is making deals with drug companies, agreeing prices for as yet unproven vaccines, to make sure that those of us in the UK are first in line.

“I have spent years watching people I know die as they cannot get their hands-on lifesaving medication. I am not willing to do it again.”

I have family living in India who haven't been able to leave their flats and homes since the start of this pandemic. I don’t want to have access to these medications before they do. That is disgusting and unfair. Our lives in the West are not more valuable than the rest of the world. 

I have spent years watching people I know die as they cannot get their hands-on lifesaving medication. I am not willing to do it again. We must make sure everyone who needs this vaccine will be able to get it, at a price that doesn’t bankrupt our NHS or other healthcare systems around the world. We can’t allow market forces to dictate the value of our lives. 

We’ve taken on big pharma and won before. Our plan B campaign for Orkambi shows that we can successfully fight to gain access to essential medications - we did it then and we can do it again with a COVID vaccine. None of us will be safe until we’re all safe. I believe that by campaigning together we can make that happen.