AIDS and TRIPS Pharmaceutical Patents, Generic Drugs and Public Health Under The TRIPS Agreement
نویسندگان
چکیده
The signing of the TRIPS agreement in 1994 heralded the world-wide enforcement of the type of intellectual property rights regime that had been established in the most developed countries. The arrival of this type of regime, which provides enlarged and powerful protection to patent-holders, coincided with the global development of the AIDS epidemic. This generated a series of new problems, particularly concerning the access to health care in the poorer countries. Taking the fight against the AIDS epidemic as its basis, this paper explores the contradictions and tensions that the TRIPS agreement has engendered in the field of public health care. It first reviews the theoretical foundations and justifications given for the establishment of patent systems. It then considers the particular case of the patent system in the pharmaceutical industry and the significance of the TRIPS agreement as regards AIDS issues. Finally, building on some lessons drawn from the Brazilian public AIDS programme, the paper raises some questions concerning the Doha Agenda and still without answer.
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