[Ip-health] EU medicines deserve protection- European Voice Article,

[Alexandra HEUMBER]

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EUROPEAN VOICE=0D
Volume 13 Number 43=0D
22 November 2007=0D
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EU medicines deserve protection=0D
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A recent meeting of the European Commission, Council of Ministers and=0D
European Parliament decided to grant least-developed nations an exemption=
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from the World Trade Organization (WTO)=E2=80=99s Agreement on Trade-Relate=
d=0D
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.=0D
Allowing such countries to produce their own generic versions of=0D
prescription drugs, it was thought, would help them in their fight against=
=0D
diseases like HIV/AIDS and malaria.=0D
For Swedish Green MEP Carl Schlyter it was not enough. He demanded the=0D
same rights for =E2=80=98developing countries=E2=80=99 like Thailand. What =
makes Thailand=0D
such a special case?=0D
Does it, for example, have an especially serious HIV/AIDS problem? It does=
=0D
not. It faces a significant challenge in containing the current epidemic,=
=0D
but the number of HIV infections has fallen in recent years to 500,000.=0D
Are the Thai unable to afford to deal with the HIV/AIDS crisis themselves?=
=0D
That seems unlikely. The World Bank classes Thailand as a lower-middle=0D
income economy.=0D
It is the same country which refused to accept any foreign aid in the=0D
aftermath of the 2004 tsunami, because it was capable of dealing with the=
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financial consequences of the disaster itself, and which increased defence=
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spending by =E2=82=AC1 billion.=0D
Would such a country not be able to afford the extra =E2=82=AC16 million it=
=0D
claims to be saving by expropriating western patents on anti-retroviral=0D
drugs?=0D
The European pharmaceutical industry was once a dominant global force,=0D
claiming the majority of all prescription-drug related patents issued=0D
worldwide. Not any more. Today, 70% of all new pharmaceutical patents are=
=0D
filed in the US. Europe=E2=80=99s failure to protect its leading position i=
n=0D
pharmaceutical R&D contributes to a brain-drain which has seen hundreds of=
=0D
thousands of European scientists seeking refuge in the US.=0D
Europe can still be highly competitive in knowledge-driven industries =E2=
=80=93 if=0D
its lawmakers do their bit by creating a legislative environment that=0D
encourages rather than discourages R&D.=0D
With nine out of ten pharmaceutical R&D projects never coming to fruition,=
=0D
the costs of developing a single marketable new prescription drug are=0D
enormous, exceeding =E2=82=AC500m. If MEPs like Schlyter are willing to han=
d the=0D
fruits of these investments away for free to =E2=80=98developing countries=
=E2=80=99 like=0D
Thailand, no right-minded pharmaceutical company would ever consider=0D
investing in the development of new HIV/AIDS drugs.=0D
The costs would be felt not just by the 640,000 people currently employed=
=0D
in Europe=E2=80=99s pharmaceutical R&D sector, but also by patients worldwi=
de who=0D
rely on the continued availability of new patented medicines. In case=0D
Schlyter wants any additional arguments in favour of adequate patent=0D
protection: a new economy sector like the pharmaceutical industry is also=
=0D
less polluting than the old heavy industries.=0D
Protecting pharmaceutical R&D patents isn=E2=80=99t just good for European =
workers=0D
and Thai HIV/AIDS patients, it is even good for the environment.=0D
=0D
<b>Joshua Livestro</b>=0D
Nottingham, UK=0D
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Copyright 2007 The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved.=0D
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