[Ip-health] Are patent pools the answer to affordable second line HIV treatment?

[Wim Vandevelde]

*Are patent pools the answer to affordable second line HIV treatment?

*

/3 November 2009/

http://www.unaids.org/en/KnowledgeCentre/Resources/FeatureStories/archive/2=
009/20091030_Patent_Pool.asp


Often prices set by pharmaceutical companies are out of reach for
developing countries. With a growing need for second-line treatment for
millions of people living with HIV, how can access to currently
expensive drugs be assured?

On 29 October, the UNAIDS Liaison Office to the European Union organized
a roundtable to discuss UNITAID=92s initiative to create a voluntary
Patent Pool for AIDS medicines. The meeting brought together
representatives of the European Commission, M=E9decins Sans Fronti=E8res,
European AIDS Treatment Group and representatives from the
pharmaceutical industry.

UNITAID, an international drug purchase facility, has taken the first
steps to create a voluntary patent pool for AIDS medicines for
developing countries for the public good.

*Intellectual Property Rights *

A patent is a form of ownership, intellectual property, which covers
creations of the mind including inventions and pharmaceuticals. It acts
as an incentive for companies to invest in research and development,
knowing that with a monopoly in the market place, they stand a good
chance of recouping their investment and making a profit.

Patents are regulated through the World Trade Organization=92s Agreement
on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property rights (TRIPS)
together with the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public health and other
World Trade Organization key decisions.

HIV-related patents remain a controversial topic between AIDS activists
and the major pharmaceutical companies; while drug prices have dropped
dramatically, newer products =96 such as second line treatment - are still
very expensive.

*Patent Pools =96 the solution? *

UNITAD argues that a patent pool could be one of the solutions to expand
access to more appropriate and lower priced medicines in low- and
middle-income countries.

A patent pool is when patent rights held by different owners such as
universities, pharmaceutical companies or government institutions, are
brought together and made available on a non-exclusive basis.

Through this mechanism pharmaceutical producers could access a
=93one-stop-shop=94 for patents. In return producers would pay royalty to
the patent holder.

Such a pool could make it easier to produce new medicines that combine
several pharmaceutical compounds patented by different companies into a
single pill. These medicines, known as =93fixed-dose combinations=94 are
easier than multiple tablets for children and adults to take, promoting
HIV treatment compliance and boosting treatment outcomes.

The patent pool could also make newer medicines more affordable and
accessible in developing countries, through opening up for completion
between different producers as well as producers not having to wait to
the end of the paten term (usually 20years).

The need for affordable HIV treatment will become more urgent as
increasing numbers of people living with HIV fail their first-line
therapy and need second-line treatments.

*Moving the Patent Pool agenda forward*

The purpose of the UNAIDS-hosted meeting was to present the creation of
the patent pool to stakeholders. Discussions were broad-ranging and a
constructive dialogue took place.

Ellen =91t Hoen who is Senior Intellectual Property and Medicines Patent
Pool advisor with UNITAID gave an overview on the ongoing discussions
between the pharmaceutical industries and UNITAID which include terms of
license agreements.

Questions on how pharmaceuticals could effectively work with the patent
pool were raised by Brendan Barnes, Director at the European Federation
of Pharmaceutical Industries, indicating his members=92 willingness to
engage if adequate data on the functions of the patent pool is made
available.

Wim Vandevelde, Chair of the European Community Advisory Board of the
European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG) welcomed the current scope of the
patent pool including Middle Income countries and urged UNTAID to stand
firm on this point in the negotiations with the patent holders. =93We
appreciate the cautious welcome from the pharmaceutical industry but we
all know that the devil will be in the detail,=94 said Mr Vandevelde.

The meeting ended with a bold call from the EATG and M=E9decins Sans
Fronti=E8res (MSF) who challenged pharmaceutical partners =93to jump into
the patent pool and get yourselves wet, in order to prevent millions of
avoidable deaths.=94

=93Newer, better antiretrovirals are already used by patients in the US
and Europe, but aren=92t available to people in developing countries... We
need these newer drugs, with fewer side effects, to gradually replace
older treatments,=94 said Michelle Childs, Director of Policy & Advocacy,
MSF Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines.

=93By making these drugs more affordable, a patent pool will ensure the
delivery of these newer drugs for people in the developing world.=94

/The UNAIDS Liaison Office to the European Union provides advice and
assistance in the conduct of relations between UNAIDS and the European
Institutions, as well as other international bodies and civil society
organizations located in Brussels, and ensures that the global AIDS
epidemic is effectively addressed by them as a priority. The Office also
aims to increase senior policy dialogue between UNAIDS and the European
Union institutions./