E-drug: ACT UP Demands Essential Medicines for All (cont'd)
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Dear e-druggers,
The problem with Venezuela's proposal to "exempt the World Health
Organization's list of essential medicines from the patent system for
"developing [and] least developed trading partners" is double:
- WHO will be very uncomfortable with such a pressure and we may
be afraid the essential drugs list not to be fully updated as a result
- the second reason is linked to the first one: some essential drugs
are not in the WHO's list.
So the limitation to the WHO's list may be a dangerous solution.
Pierre Chirac
MSF, Paris
e-mail: pierchir@club-internet.fr
[I understand that ACT UP is pressuring the US government (USTR);
not WHO. But it would not hurt if WHO would support developing
countries in their patent struggle by selecting antiretrovirals for
inclusion in next updates of the Model List of Essential Drugs. After
all, selecting essential drugs is a technical act; not a political one. It
would be interesting to hear WHO's opinion on Venezuela and
Kenya's step. Hilbrand Haak, E-drug co-moderator].
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