E-DRUG: Question and Reply on EU FTAs and access to medicines
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QUESTION TO THE EUROEPAN COMMISSION by DAVID MARTIN (MEP and Chair of the
EP working group on Innovation, Access to medicines and Povery related
diseases)
Bilateral Trade Agreements
ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, Tenerife 27 March - April 1st 2010
Can the Commission comment on whether it is negotiating TRIPs Plus
provisions within any of its ongoing bilateral trade agreements with
developing, emerging or advanced economies? With respect specifically to
access to affordable medicines, in what way do the negotiated Intellectual
Property clauses of the various ongoing bilateral trade agreements differ?
India is undoubtedly an important supplier of generic medicines to
developing countries. How does the Commission support India in the
manufacture and supply of generic drugs to other developing countries?
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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 'S REPY TO Question 14 by David MARTIN
Bilateral Trade Agreements
Reply
The level of ambition of the EU on intellectual property in bilateral
trade agreements depends on the economic and legal situation of the
trading partners concerned. For partners with which the EU has major
economic interests, there is a high level of ambition. This approach is
valid for countries like for example China and Korea. In the case of less
developed partners, the Commission is less demanding and fully takes into
account the level of development of its partner. This has been the case
for example with CARIFORUM countries.
With regard to access to medicines, the Commission is not asking and will
not ask for provisions which would be contrary to or otherwise undermine
the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health. The
intellectual property provisions proposed by the Commission in all
bilateral trade agreements refer explicitly to the Doha Declaration, so as
to ensure that the flexibilities granted by the TRIPS Agreement,
especially as regards patents on medicines, remain unaffected.
The Commission also proposes an explicit recognition of the right of
trading partners to import cheaper medicines from other countries where
they have been legally put on the market. Moreover, the Commission does
not impose any restriction with regard to the use of compulsory licensing.
On the contrary, the Commission encourages its partners to implement the
WTO decisions on compulsory licensing with a view to helping countries
without manufacturing in the pharmaceutical sector get the medicines they
may need.
Where appropriate, the Commission also offers technical assistance and
co-operation including on intellectual property in relation to access to
medicines.
When specific provisions on data protection and patent term extension –
sometimes called TRIPS+ - are proposed, they are adapted to the trading
partner concerned. In any case, the Commission makes sure that such
provisions must be implemented and interpreted in a way that does not
impair the capacity of both parties to promote the legitimate trade in
generic medicines. When the Commission proposes provisions on border
measures, the intention is of course not to hinder the legitimate trade in
generic products but to put an end to the international trafficking of
illegal medicines that put health, in particular that of poor people, at
risk.
In the case of India, the capacity of this country to issue compulsory
licences on pharmaceutical products, including for export to other
developing countries and least-developed countries, would therefore be
unaffected by so-called TRIPS+ provisions.
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2009_2014/organes/acp_/acp__20100329_1500_plen.htmA
Alexandra Heumber
EU & IP Policy Adviser
Medecins Sans Frontieres
Access to Essential Medicines Campaign
Rue Dupre, 94. 1090 Brussels
++32 (0) 2 474 75 09 (Dir off)
++ 32 (0) 479 514 900 (Mob)
++ 32 (0) 2 474 75 75 (Fax)
Alexandra HEUMBER <Alexandra.HEUMBER@brussels.msf.org>