The United States and 11 Asia-Pacific countries are negotiating a free trade agreement will implement a proactive intellectual property rules, to restrict access to affordable medicines in developing countries, health activists warned Wednesday.
12 countries will begin July 15 at Malaysia's first 18 talks and hope to complete by the October negotiations. Japan will join the Trans-Pacific Partnership talks for the first time, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Peru, Chile and Mexico together.
FIFA Rahman, Malaysian AIDS Council said the talks had been held secret, but leaked draft agreement shows that Washington presents a formidable intellectual property system, which will improve the pharmaceutical company's patent and data protection, hinder competition, more cheap generic versions of drugs.
This may further restrict access to millions of people affordable, life-saving medicines, she said on the sidelines of the International AIDS Conference.
"TPP will be the big pharma's icing on the cake, this will create a generic barriers around the bush, it will have a chilling effect on many developing countries access to affordable drugs, said:" Riyadh Menghaney, MSF .
Menghaney said the agreement, billed as a global model for future trade agreements, you can set the damage, serious impact on developing countries precedent.
Provisions in the agreement will be beneficial to the practice of "evergreen", where generics pharmaceutical companies use a variety of tactics to prolong the drug monopoly protection, beyond the initial patent term to restrict access, she said. She said the company will be able to a single drug, so that even in the original patent expires, the protection sought after product in multiple secondary patents.
Pharmaceutical company said that strong intellectual property protection, in order to promote investment in research and development of new and better drugs.
Once the drug patent expires, generic drug manufacturers can legally produce. They are able to make the drug in the original manufacturer a small portion of the cost, because they are not costly research and development.
Third World Network Fauwaz · Abdul Aziz said the agreement will further tip the balance away from commercial interests and public health. This is often in the developing world, where people rarely have medical insurance to pay out of pocket pharmaceutical issues of life and death, he said.
FIFA said that 80% of the drugs used to treat HIV in developing countries is the production of generic drugs in India. However, some countries such as Malaysia have paid some HIV drugs due to a poor local patent procurement systems and the highest price, she said.
"If some countries, such as Malaysia and Vietnam are hindered provide affordable generic drugs part of the agreement, have exhausted all other treatment options will again face death in people with AIDS live," she said.
Urges Member States to renegotiate the terms or quit the talks in order to ensure that public health interests are protected.
12 countries accounted for nearly 40 percent of the global economy and about one-third of world trade.
 



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