E-drug: Access news from the WHO Executive Board
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Dear Friends,
The 107th WHO Executive Board meeting opened yesterday and a number
of key issues of concern to HAI and its partners are on the agenda.
We wanted to share some highlights with you.
Below are some quotes from the Director General`s statement to the Board
made on Monday morning. The full text should be available soon on the WHO
website. (http://www.who.int) Go to governance and then go to
documentation for the 107th Executive Board, January 2001.
(starting with paragraph 60)
Through our work with the United Nations partners, with the European
Union, the G8 and the private sector, we have stressed the need for
globalisation to work for the poor. A central element of this is the
work to improve access to essential drugs and other pharmaceuticals.
We work closely with our member states to build on the converging
interests of clinical medicine, global public health, the research
based
pharmaceutical industry, and those who set the rules for international
trade. We are finding opportunities for innovation and creative
collaboration to overcome market failures. We support the protection of
patents as necessary and effective incentive for research and development.
Essential drugs, though, are an unusual commodity. The patents that
apply to their development and production should be managed in ways
that benefit the patent holders and the public.
This means that we encourage equity pricing for medicines that are on
patent, and the production of generics for those that are not so that poor
people can more easily access the drugs they need. To this end, we continue
to seek new relationships between the public and corporate sectors.
Relationships that will contribute to health for all and health equity�.
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Today we expect the Brazilian delegation to introduce a resolution on
access issues under the agenda item � Strengthening health sector
delivery:
partnership with nongovernmental organisations> (agenda item 3.4).
As more becomes clear on that topic we will let you know.
Your thoughts and comments are welcome, please reach us at our
temporary Geneva e-mail account : hai_in_geneva@hotmail.com
With best wishes,
Lisa Hayes
HAI Europe
hai_in_geneva@hotmail.com
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