[Ip-health] news coverage of Congressional letter to USTR on Thailand CL

[Benjamin Krohmal]

Many thanks to those of you who signed on to the NGO/individual
letter to USTR that helped get Congressional support.


By Mark Drajem
      Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Democrats in Congress told the U.S.
trade office to back-off criticisms of Thailand's decision to
sell knock-off copies of a patented Merck & Co. AIDS drug.
      Twenty-two Democrats, including Sander Levin of Michigan,
the chairman of the trade subcommittee of the House Ways and
Means Committee, said the office's action that was a mistake in
a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab.
      ``It is our understanding that the United States government
may be attempting to intervene in the Thai government's
decision,'' the letter said. ``We therefore call on you to
respect the rights of Thailand and other nations to implement
important and permitted public health safeguards.''
      The debate over pharmaceuticals, patent protections and
trade agreements is another front the Democrats plan to open
this year against drugmakers, part of a larger campaign to cut
the costs of drugs, improve drug-safety enforcement and make
generic medications available faster.
      Thailand announced before last year that it would allow
generic pharmaceutical companies to copy the drug, Efavirenz, as
it sought to get lower prices for AIDS drugs and quintuple the
number of people getting treatment.
      The U.S. pharmaceutical industry complained about the move
and the U.S. Trade Representative's office took up its cause,
arguing that Thailand should have consulted with Merck before
making the decision.
      More than 500,000 Thais are infected with the virus that
causes AIDS, according to the United Nations.
      The issue of health and trade has grown in importance in
recent years as advocates for the poor say that millions of
people with AIDS in Africa and Asia don't have access to
affordable medicine, while at the same time the Bush
administration has made the protection of intellectual property
rights one of its top trade priorities.

                    Kennedy, Waxman Object

      Last year, Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts and
Representative Henry Waxman of California, both Democrats,
criticized efforts by the administration to get the World Health
Organization to drop a study critical of U.S. trade agreements.
They also demanded that the Government Accountability Office
study the effect on public health from U.S.-negotiated
intellectual property protections.
      In the Thai case, the U.S. trade office and Merck say they
share the goals of the Thai government.
      ``We look forward to exploring ways in which we can assist
the Royal Thai government in improving the treatment available
to HIV/AIDS patients in Thailand,'' Raymond Kerins, Merck
executive director for public affairs, said in an e-mail today.

                          Cut Prices

      After Thailand issued its decree, Merck said it would cut
the prices for Efavirenz to try to keep generic competition out
of the market, the Financial Times reported Nov. 30.
      The drugmakers lobbying group, the Pharmaceutical Research
and Manufacturers of America, took a harder line, arguing in a
statement on Dec. 22 that the move violated Thailand's own
patent rules and is of ``grave concern.''
      A World Bank study published last year said Thailand could
save $3.2 billion over the next two decades by allowing generic
copies of AIDS drugs.
      Stephen Norton, a spokesman for Schwab, didn't have an
immediate comment.



Benjamin Krohmal
Coordinator - Project on Medical Innovation
Consumer Project on Technology
Tel: +1-202-332-2670 ex. 14
Fax: +1-202-332-2673
ben.krohmal@cptech.org