[Ip-health] CI Statement to EB on "Global Framework for Essential Health R&D"

[James Love]

This was presented by Ellen 't Hoen to the WHO Executive Board on
Thursday.  Jamie

STATEMENT BY CONSUMERS INTERNATIONAL
EB117/Conf.Paper No.3, Agenda item 4.10
Global Framework for Essential Health R&D
January 26, 2006

Consumers International (CI) represents 234 consumer groups and
organisations in 113 countries.  It strives to promote a fairer
society through defending the rights of all consumers, especially the
poor, marginalized and disadvantaged. CI is an NGO in official
relations with WHO.

This statement is also supported by Medecins sans Frontieres access
to essential medicines campaign, Health Action International, Medico
International, Third World Network and CPTech.

We strongly support the timely and important proposal by Kenya and
Brazil (EB 117/Conf.Paper No.3, Agenda item 4.10) to establish a
working group of interested Member-States to consider proposals to
establish a global framework for supporting essential health R&D.

We recognize the importance of innovation in improving health care,
but we also know that innovations need to meet real health needs, and
they remain meaningless if there is no access. The draft resolution
provides a new way of looking at innovation.  By calling for the
creation of a committee of interested Member States to consider a new
global framework to support R&D, the resolution would create a space
for concrete discussions among countries on the important and
difficult questions of how to set priorities for essential health R&D
and how to share the costs of R&D for new medicines.

The resolution correctly recognizes the important role of both public
and private sector R&D efforts.  It acknowledges the importance of
providing the right balance between the protection of intellectual
property and the public domain, and the need to implement
intellectual property rules in a way that is consistent with human
rights, the public interest and the promotion of follow-on innovation.

At present, the world is struggling with a plethora of trade
agreements and negotiations that address intellectual property
rules , as well as bilateral agreements that concern drug pricing .
Except for discussions within the G8, the agreements do not address
public sector support for R&D, or other areas where the global
community needs to address market failures in R&D, such as the
development of treatments for neglected diseases, or public goods
such as the Human Genome Project.

We need a balanced global framework for R&D.   What we need is a
mechanism that encourages R&D in areas of priority, while allowing
governments to protect consumers from high prices and access barriers.
The proposal you are discussing today is a step in that direction.

Recent examples have shown how political will can ensure
international cooperation and the marshalling of tremendous resources
for R&D.

Unfortunately a sense of urgency that resulted in swift and efficient
responses to the SARS outbreak and the potential avian flu pandemic
is entirely lacking when it comes to R&D for diseases that
predominantly affect poor people in developing countries.

A new global framework for R&D would also address issues of sharing
the cost of R&D for other diseases, including those that affect
patients North and South, rich and poor, chronic or episodic,
communicable or non-communicable, address the range of health
problems that are important to people.

WHO as the global health agency is well placed to host and encourage
the discussion on a new global framework that will ensure that
medicines, diagnostics, vaccines and other essential health
technologies are developed and made available to all.

WE STRONGLY SUPPORT THIS RESOLUTION AS A FIRST IMPORTANT STEP IN THIS
DIRECTION.


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James Love, CPTech / www.cptech.org / mailto:james.love@cptech.org /
tel. +1.202.332.2670 / mobile +1.202.361.3040

"If everyone thinks the same: No one thinks."  Bill Walton