ISDS Case Map
medicines
US pharmaceutical industry association the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America is calling on the US Trade Representative to include strong intellectual property provisions, such as 12-year data protection for follow-on biologics, in the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.
Nations currently negotiating trade deals with the European Union (EU) have been warned that they must resist European demands which could threaten access to medicines in emerging and developing countries.
India will not compromise its stand or take a position on intellectual property rights (IPR), especially on pharmaceuticals, beyond its domestic law and agreements as mandated under the aegis of the global trade body—World Trade Organization (WTO).
After four years of talks, India and the European Union are narrowing down their differences on a bilateral Free Trade Agreement that critics in India and elsewhere say could have a devastating impact on public health by hampering access to life-saving drugs for millions of people.
As free trade agreement talks between Europe and India resume in Brussels today, the international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is deeply concerned about new measures Europe is pushing to restrict the production of affordable generic medicines that MSF and others rely on to treat patients across the developing world.
India today ruled out sharing test data of drugs, or data exclusivity, of Indian pharma firms with developed countries and multi-national companies, and stressed that the provision will not form part of any free trade agreements pursued by the country.
Eleven public interest advocacy groups and three law professors have submitted a petition to Anand Grover, the Special Rapporteur for the United Nations on the right to health, to intervene in a new regional trade agreement that will shrink the market for legal generic medecines.
All eyes are on the EU-India trade agreement, and the repercussions it will have on access to medicines in India and other developing countries. At the same time, the EU is in the process of negotiating other trade agreements that could harm or hinder access to medicines, such as this week's negotiations between the EU and the Mercosur countries.
Amid concerns expressed by the Indian industry, the government today said in Parliament that it will protect the interest of the domestic drug industry while finalising the free trade pact with European Union.
India has sorted out most of its differences with the European Union on production of low-cost generic medicines, ahead of a crucial meeting on a proposed free-trade pact next month, a government official told ET. Civil society groups, however, warn that India should be on its guard to ensure that the intellectual property rights (IPR) regime is not changed to allow extension of patents.
