E-DRUG: Press release- EU double standards threaten to leave poor countries without medicines
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EU double standards threaten to leave poor countries without medicines -
Oxfam and Health Action International Europe
20 October 2009 - The European Union is contradicting world trade rules
by putting the interests of big drug companies before the 2 billion
people in the world who cannot access essential medicines, according to
a new report today by Oxfam and Health Action International, Europe.
The EU's actions also undermine its obligations to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals, as well as World Trade Organization
agreements.
The report coincides with recent news that India and Brazil are filing a
complaint against the European Commission at the WTO after the
Netherlands seized anti-HIV and other medicines earlier this year. The
medicines were going from India via Europe to Brazil, Colombia and
Nigeria.
The report says that, since late 2008, Germany as well as the
Netherlands has made customs seizures together totaling 19 shipments of
generic medicines bound for developing countries. Oxfam and HAI (Europe)
say the generic shipments were legitimate under WTO rules.
The EU is increasing pressure on developing country governments to
surrender their rights to obtain affordable, generic medicines in order
to protect public health, even though these rights are guaranteed under
global trade rules, the groups say.
The EU is also insisting on tough new intellectual property rules in
bilateral free trade deals that go beyond the WTO's existing TRIPS
agreement.
The EU is pushing these measures that will result in higher medicine
prices in developing countries at the same time it is trying to reduce
domestic medicine prices. Twenty-four out of 27 EU Member States have
taken steps to implement price controls for medicines.
Furthermore, the European Commission is carrying out a high profile
investigation into the pharmaceutical industry for intellectual property
abuses in the European Union, and is contemplating action against these
companies.
Elise Ford, Oxfam head of EU advocacy, said: "The EU is guilty of double
standards. One rule for the rich and another for the poor. A crackdown
on European pharmaceutical prices is happening alongside a concerted
effort to further push intellectual property rules that prevent poor
countries from buying affordable medicines."
The EU's policies are increasing the cost of medicines. This is hitting
the poorest people in developing countries disproportionately hard, as
20-60% of their health budgets are spent on medicines.
"Millions of poor people have to pay for medicines out of their own
pockets so even a small price rise can make them unaffordable. Europe's
policies are directly responsible for this scandal," Ford said.
The EU's trade policies demand that developing countries protect the
interests of drug companies above public health priorities, and the EU
demands exceed even those made by the much-criticised US administration
of President Bush.
Sophie Bloemen, Projects Officer for Health Action International Europe,
said: "The EU must accept its moral and legal obligations. There is
growing evidence that the EU's trade agenda is causing severe damage to
public health in developing countries."
The report details a number of other EU policies that are damaging
access to medicines in developing countries including:
- promotion of a new global framework to enforce Intellectual
Property rules which delay access to generic medicines in developing
countries, including through seizures of legitimate medicines;
- obstructing progress at the World Health Organization towards
new models of research and development that meet health needs in
developing countries; and
- spending on R&D for developing countries that remains
insufficient in spite of increases in recent years.
These policies lack coherence and undermine broader EU development
objectives to promote access to health care. While the EU is increasing
funding to improve health care for European citizens, it is denying
developing countries the affordable medicines they need to ensure good
health, the report says.
"It's time that the EU joins up its policies. Both the EC and Member
States must promote access to health care in their development policies
and access to affordable medicines through their trade policy", Ford
said.
DOWNLOAD THE REPORT:
Trading Away Access to Medicines: How the European Union's trade agenda
has taken a wrong turn. Sophie Bloemen (HAI) and Rohit Malpani (Oxfam).
http://haiweb.org/20102009/OxfamHAIReportTradingAwayAccesstoMedicines.pd
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For further information:
Angela Corbelan +32 22341155/ +32 473562260/
angela.corbelan@oxfaminternational.org
<mailto:angela.corbelan@oxfaminternational.org>
Sophie Bloemen +31 20 683 3684/ sophie@haiweb.org
"Terri - Louise Beswick" <Terri@haiweb.org>