[Ip-health] sign on !! -- Novartis DROP THE CASE in India Petition

[Sheila.SHETTLE@geneva.msf.org]

People Before Patents: The lives of millions are at stake=0D
         Sign-on to help protect access to affordable medicines!!=0D
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      Pharmaceutical company Novartis is taking the Indian government to=0D
                                    court.=0D
     If the company wins, millions of people across the globe could have=0D
                their sources of affordable medicines dry up.=0D
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Novartis was one of the 39 companies that took the South African government=
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to court five years ago, in an effort to overturn the country=E2=80=99s med=
icines=0D
act that was designed to bring drug prices down. Now Novartis is up to it=
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again and is targeting India.=0D
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India produces affordable medicines that are vital to many people living in=
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developing countries.  Over half the medicines currently used for AIDS=0D
treatment in developing countries come from India and such medicines are=0D
used to treat over 80% of the 80,000 AIDS patients in M=C3=A9decins Sans=0D
Fronti=C3=A8res projects.=0D
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If Novartis is successful in its challenge against the Indian government=0D
and its patent law, more medicines are likely to be patented in India,=0D
making it very difficult for generic producers to make affordable versions=
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of them.  This could affect millions of people around the world who depend=
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on medicines produced in India.=0D
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Tell Novartis it has no business standing in the way of people=E2=80=99s ri=
ght to=0D
access the medicines they need.  Sign on and urge Novartis to DROP THE CASE=
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against the Indian government.=0D
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To sign the petition, click here:=0D
http://www.msf.org/petition_india/international.html=0D
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+++++++++++++++++++++=0D
Sheila Shettle=0D
Senior Communications Officer=0D
M=C3=A9decins Sans Fronti=C3=A8res=0D
Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines=0D
Rue de Lausanne 78=0D
1211 Geneva, Switzerland=0D
+ 41.22.849.8403=0D
+ 41.79.293.0270 (m.)=0D
www.accessmed-msf.org=0D
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