E-drug: WHO EB Action on Access Issues
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Dear Friends,
This morning the WHO Executive Board considered Brazil`s draft resolution on
strengthening health delivery: partnership with nongovernmental
organisations. In the text, Brazil emphasised a number of access issues
including the need for an international database on drug prices organised by
WHO and the importance of implementing the Revised Drug Strategy resolution
passed two years ago at the World Health Assembly.
In the discussion that followed, a number of countries recognised the
importance of addressing questions involving WHO`s role in improving access
to essential medicines. While opinions on what to do differed, the following
countries spoke out: Brazil, US, Venezuela, France, Sweden, Switzerland,
Guatemala, Italy, Belgium, Cote dIvoire, and Bolivia.
HAI and Consumers International also made a joint statement on the issue,
which you will find at the bottom of this message.
As a result of the discussion, Brazil agreed to withdraw its resolution in
return for the WHO secretariat to provide a report to the upcoming WHA on
the progress made in implementing the Revised Drug Strategy (with a
focus on access issues) and working with NGOs.
We are very pleased that Brazil placed access on the Executive Board agenda
as it was not a topic included in the original agenda for the meeting. It is
now almost 19 months since the Revised Drug Strategy resolution was
adopted by the World Health Assembly, and it is very important to
hear about its implementation so far.
Hiro Suzuki, Executive Director for Health Technology and Pharmaceuticals at
WHO responded to the debate, saying that WHO would be pleased to make a
report on the progress so far as much has happened since the resolution was
adopted in 1999. This includes:
1. WHO and UNAIDS cooperation with five pharmaceutical companies`
initiative to accelerate and improve provision of AIDS-related care
for people living in developing countries
2. work by WHO to find ways to increase access to important medicines
3. studies by WHO to assess the impact of trade agreements on public health
4. undertaking pricing work with Management Sciences for Health and
Medecins Sans Frontieres to make sure pricing information is made
available
5. planning a meeting in March to discuss the essential drugs list
and issues of access
This means that access will certainly be a matter for discussion at this
May`s World Health Assembly in Geneva. We will keep you posted as
developments occur.
Best wishes,
Lisa Hayes
HAI Europe
"Lisa Hayes" <hai_in_geneva@hotmail.com>
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Statement on behalf of Consumers International for the 107th EB
Version 6, 15:50 Related to agenda item 3.4
Strengthening health services delivery:Partnerships with nongovernmental
organisations
Mr Chairman, members of the Executive Board,
I am speaking on behalf of Consumers International and Health Action
International.
This statement has been endorsed by Medecins Sans Frontieres,
CMC-Churches Action for Health, Oxfam-Great Britain and World Vision
International.
Today public interest health NGOs are actively involved in a number of
policy dialogues and projects involving WHO. At the WHO-Public Interest NGO
Roundtable on Pharmaceuticals, NGOs play an active role in providing input
on technical and policy issues. Because of joint concerns about access to
essential medicines and equity drug pricing, WHO, HAI and Oxfam Great
Britain have commenced a project on developing a methodology to
compare drug prices in low and middle income countries. Recently more
than 600 consumer and NGO representatives gathered at the Consumers
International World Congress in Durban where they endorsed key
resolutions on improving access to essential medicines. Medecins Sans
Frontieres campaign for access to essential medicines and drugs for
neglected diseases project have been
important in defining key problems and urging WHO leadership and action on
them. These examples illustrate NGO involvement in identifying needs and
developing, implementing and monitoring WHO policy on essential drugs at
both the national and international level. However, there remains much to be
done.
In her address to this Executive Board meeting, the Director General stated
that there is a massive gap between the resources needed to help poor
communities tackle different causes of illness, and the funding and human
capacity currently available to them. For HIV/AIDS, WHO estimates an
additional US$ 3 billion per year is needed for stepping up prevention,
treatment and support in Africa alone. This excludes the costs of
antiretroviral drugs.
The need to increase access to essential medicines including new medicines
has been reaffirmed by a series of World Health Assembly resolutions. We
believe that the WHO Model List of Essential Drugs has been and remains one
of the most important public health tools available to increase access to
needed medicines and to promote their rational selection and use. The list
suggests a limited number of drugs with a good risk/benefit ratio. As
affordability is a criteria for inclusion on the list, most drugs are
off-patent and in most cases, multiple generic sources are available. As
mentioned in a letter to Executive Board members from Medecins Sans
Frontieres, there is an urgent need to update the essential drugs list
concept, and to clarify and prioritise the criteria for inclusion on the
list. We are pleased to learn from the Department of Essential Drugs and
other Medicines that work on this is underway.
We are pleased to note that the WHO is committed to encourage equity pricing
for medicines on patent so that poor people can more easily obtain the drugs
they need. In conjunction with that effort, we call on WHO to expand its
work on databases of essential drugs prices and raw materials. The sources
need to be validated for assured quality by WHO, in collaboration with other
relevant UN agencies such as UNICEF. As well, there needs to be
collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization to include
information about the patent status of drugs.
Countries are now changing their trade laws, often under great pressure to
go beyond the requirements set out in the TRIPs agreement. For that reason,
WHO urgently needs to provide member states with model laws and
regulations on compulsory licensing and other legal measures to
overcome barriers to access to expensive medications. Operational
research is needed at national level to identify the rationality and
cost-effectiveness of key therapies under field conditions. In
addition, WHO should play a leading role in
defining a needs-driven research agenda to assist policy makers, funding
agencies and the research community in setting research priorities that will
address developing countries` pharmacotherapy needs.
Finally, to reaffirm the World Health Assembly`s commitment to the Revised
Drug Strategy and to encourage national level implementation of strategies
that would guarantee public health interests and equitable access to
medicines, we urge WHO to provide annual progress reports on the
implementation of the Revised Drug Strategy.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on this important issue.
--
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