Well here's what one might call something of a smoking gun!
The UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) has lodged a Software package and information systems Contract award notice (2020/S 207-506291) as follows:
Let that sink in for a moment...
Well, how about that for not-hidden in plain sight!
The PDF of this contract notice is below.
Great spot by Dave Cullen in his latest hard hitting video.
The UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) has lodged a Software package and information systems Contract award notice (2020/S 207-506291) as follows:
The MHRA urgently seeks an Artificial Intelligence (AI) software tool to process the expected high volume of Covid-19 vaccine Adverse Drug Reaction (ADRs) and ensure that no details from the ADRs’ reaction text are missed.
Let that sink in for a moment...
Section IV: Procedure
Description
Type of procedure
Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the Official Journal of the European Union in the cases listed below
The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the directive
Explanation:
For reasons of extreme urgency under Regulation 32(2)(c) related to the release of a Covid-19 vaccine MHRA have accelerated the sourcing and implementation of a vaccine specific AI tool.
Strictly necessary — it is not possible to retrofit the MHRA’s legacy systems to handle the volume of ADRs that will be generated by a Covid-19 vaccine. Therefore, if the MHRA does not implement the AI tool, it will be unable to process these ADRs effectively. This will hinder its ability to rapidly identify any potential safety issues with the Covid-19 vaccine and represents a direct threat to patient life and public health.
Reasons of extreme urgency — the MHRA recognises that its planned procurement process for the SafetyConnect programme, including the AI tool, would not have concluded by vaccine launch. Leading to a inability to effectively monitor adverse reactions to a Covid-19 vaccine.
Events unforeseeable — the Covid-19 crisis is novel and developments in the search of a Covid-19 vaccine have not followed any predictable pattern so far.
Well, how about that for not-hidden in plain sight!
The PDF of this contract notice is below.
Great spot by Dave Cullen in his latest hard hitting video.