E-DRUG: HAI statement at WHO Exec Board on Access to Ess Drugs
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[www.haiweb.org/campaign/access/EB109statement.html
WB]
Statement for the WHO Executive Board, 14 - 21 January 2002
By Consumers International (CI), Health Action International (HAI),
M�decins Sans Fronti�res (MSF), OXFAM
Delivered by Ellen't Hoen on 15 January 2002
We would like to thank you for this opportunity to address the WHO
Executive Board to highlight issues related to WHO's medicines policy
and in particular WHO's work on increasing access to essential
medicines in developing countries.
Next steps for the Model List of Essential Drugs (EDL)
The EDL is one of the most important public health tools. Essential
drugs are those that satisfy the health care needs of the majority of
the population; they should therefore be available at all times in
adequate amounts and in the appropriate dosage forms, and at a price
that individuals and their communities can afford. The essential drugs
concept guides countries as well as non-governmental organisations
(NGOs) in selection of drugs, decisions about procurement and pricing
policies, and rational drug use.
We welcome the revised procedure for updating WHO's Model List of
Essential Drugs as outlined in document EB109/8. The procedure ensures
an independent, transparent, and evidence-based process for revising
the EDL. We would like to stress the need to ensure the independence
of the Expert Committee that is entrusted with the technical work to
draw up the EDL. We particularly welcome the fact that expensive
essential drugs will no longer be excluded from the list solely
because of price.
However, the expansion of the EDL should go hand-in-hand with measures
to ensure that these medicines become affordable for the individuals
and communities who need them most.
Equity pricing
WHO should actively support strategies that lead to equity pricing of
essential medicines. An equity pricing system should include measures
to increase generic competition, differential pricing, global/regional
procurement and distribution, local production through compulsory or
voluntary licensing, and technology transfer.
We would like to warn against unwarranted optimism with regard to the
multinational pharmaceutical industry's willingness to bring drug
prices down. Equity pricing will not be achieved by relying only on
voluntary actions by pharmaceutical companies.
Obtaining up-to-date pricing information is difficult, and negotiating
drug prices with different companies for individual products is
time-consuming. WHO should support the dissemination of drug pricing
information and provide developing countries with support for
across-the-board price negotiations.
MSF will continue to work with the WHO, UNAIDS and UNICEF on providing
information on drug prices which is available on the UNAIDS Web-site.
NGOs welcome the collaboration within the NGO Roundtable process on
development of price monitoring methodology coordinated by WHO and
HAI. (i)
Pre-qualification of low cost medicines
Lower priced versions of new medicines, such as antiretrovirals, are
becoming available on the markets of developing countries, and it is
paramount to assist countries in assuring the quality of these
products. WHO's work in pre-qualifying medicines needs to be supported
and expanded. This is particularly important with respect to
procurement activities related to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria.
The Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial meeting made it
unambiguously clear that the protection of public health deserves
special treatment in trade regulation. The Doha declaration on TRIPS
and Public Health lays out the options countries have to take measures
when prices of existing patented drugs are too high for their
populations. This year, WHO must, together with other relevant
international organisations, provide practical technical assistance to
make sure that the Doha declaration makes a difference at the national
level. WHO should play an active role at the TRIPS Council to ensure
that countries without production capacity can procure low-cost
medicines elsewhere, and should provide countries with examples or
models of intellectual property legislation. We offer to work with WHO
to make this a reality.
Gap in research and development
It is the international community's responsibility to address the lack
of research and development for neglected diseases, such as
leishmaniasis, sleeping sickness and Chagas' disease, affecting
populations with no purchasing power and no vocal advocacy groups.
Market forces will not stimulate R&D for neglected diseases.
Public/private partnerships alone will not offer solutions because
there is no market incentive. Radical new approaches are needed to
kick-start R&D for neglected diseases, including new funding
mechanisms in areas that are now totally abandoned and not-for-profit
drug development initiatives. WHO clearly must play a major role,
along with governments and donor countries, in setting an essential
R&D agenda and stimulating R&D.
We reiterate our commitment to working with you on these issues and
thank you for your attention.
(i) See: Sources and prices of selected drugs and diagnostics for
people living with HIV/AIDS (May 2001)
Joint UNICEF - UNAIDS Secretariat - WHO/HTP - MSF Project
(www.accessmed-msf.org)
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