Dear Colleagues,
HAI-Europe would like to bring the following announcement to your
attention. We look forward to your comments and hope that those
interested in this issue will contact us for more information.
Best wishes,
Elizabeth Hayes
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DRUG POLICY EXPERTS PUBLISH STATEMENT ON
NEED FOR GREATER OPENNESS IN DRUG REGULATION
Health Action International-Europe (HAI) and the Dag Hammarskjoeld
Foundation today published an international statement on the need for
transparency and accountability in drug regulation. The statement was
drawn up by an international working group of drug policy experts
brought together by the two organisations.
The Statement of the International Working Group on Transparency and
Accountability in Drug Regulation calls for greater openness in the
way national and international drug regulators handle data regarding
drug quality and safety and how they monitor the public's use of
medicines. Too often, it says, secrecy surrounds government decisions
on drugs which undermines public confidence in the regulatory process.
Today, drug agencies often maintain secrecy to a much greater extent
than law or logic actually demand. In principle, members of the
international working group believe that openness should be the rule
and secrecy the exception.
Excessive secrecy slows the development of scientific knowledge and
can be used to cover falsification or suppression of crucial data on
drugs awaiting approval. It can also lead to public mistrust when only
partial information is released or regulatory decisions are announced
without any explanation of the underlying reasons for them. It also
allows companies to withhold information on "unfavourable" research
results.
While the experts agree that some legitimate business secrets deserve
to be protected, the organisation has stressed the need to limit and
define the type of data which should be protected on the grounds of
commercial or patient confidentiality so that this privilege is not
abused.
The statement highlights the need for drug regulatory agencies to
reaffirm their commitment to protecting the public interest by making
more information available about their decisions and decision-making
process. The statement is available in English, French, Spanish and
Portuguese. Copies can be obtained from HAI-Europe (address given
below).
HAI and all of its partners working for greater freedom of information
believe that decisions affecting people's health should not be made
behind closed doors. HAI and these groups are committed to this effort
and have launched a new campaign on greater access to drug
information.
For more information, contact:
Elizabeth Hayes
HAI-Europe
Jacob van Lennepkade 334-T
1053 NJ Amsterdam
The Netherlands
tel: (+31-20)683 3684
fax: (+31-20)685 5002
e-mail: hai@hai.antenna.nl