On June 23, 2017, Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Representatives Kevin Brady (R-TX) and Richard Neal (D-MA) wrote to President Trump about “trade and investment barriers” in India. The four members of Congress are respectively the chair and ranking members of the Senate Finance and the House Ways and Means Committee.
On March 31st, KEI joined Prescription Justice, EFF, and Public Citizen at RightsCon 2017 to discuss the issues of sales of medication over the Internet. I was in attendance on KEI’s behalf; Gabe Levitt represented Prescription Justice; Jeremy Malcolm presented for EFF; and Burcu Kilic was there for Public Citizen. It was one of the few panels at RightsCon dedicated to medicines/health.
After the session, the panelists convened to draft an agreement on a series of overarching principles that may help guide policy and shape the conversation.
Today, six Senators, including Sen. Durbin (D-IL), Sen. Sanders (I-VT), Sen. Markey (D-MA), Sen. Brown (D-OH), Sen. Blumenthal (D-CT), and Sen. Angus King (I-ME), sent a letter to Acting Secretary of the Army Robert Speer requesting a public hearing on the proposed exclusive license of a federally-funded Zika vaccine to the French multinational, Sanofi, and saying that “it is imperative that any forthcoming vaccine is accessible and affordable for all, especially given the significant taxpayer investment to date.”
The United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) convened its 35th session from 6 June 2017 to 23 June 2017. During HRC35 (which took place in Room XX of the UN Palais des Nations in Geneva), a group of 21 countries tabled a resolution entitled, “The right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. Continue Reading
As reported by Knowledge Ecology International (KEI), on 6 June 2017, the World Trade Organization (WTO), published a paper tabled by Brazil, China, Fiji, India, and South Africa, entitled “Intellectual Property and the Public Interest.” In their communication (IP/C/W/630), the proponents called for a series of discussions at the WTO TRIPS Council on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest. Continue Reading
In February 2016, KEI submitted a FOIA to USTR requesting “all correspondence and notes sent internally by the Office of the US Trade Representative as well as with Colombian government officials, other foreign government officials, and non-governmental persons or entities regarding efforts in the government of Colombia to issue compulsory licenses on medical technologies. Continue Reading
In the run up to the 70th World Health Assembly (22 May 2017 – 31 May 2017), the World Health Organization prepared a document (A70/INF./4, 16 May 2017) entitled, Voluntary contributions by fund and by contributor, 2016. Total voluntary contributions to WHO in 2016 amounted to $1,717,219,177 which represented a dip from the 2015 figure of $1,836,970,206.
Here is a non-exhaustive list detailing the sources of voluntary contributions to WHO and the size of their respective contributions in 2016.
(More on government funded inventions here. Other KEI comments on NIH licenses are found here.) On May 31, 2017, we sent the following comment to the NIH regarding the proposed exclusive license on certain patents for cancer treatment to GeneXion Oncology. May 31,… Continue Reading
Portugal delivered the following statement at the 70th World Health Assembly on agenda item, 13.3 – Global shortage of, and access to medicines and vaccines.
In relation to the Report of the United Nations High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines (UNHLP), the delegation of Portugal quoted the intervention delivered by the Portuguese Minister of Health, Professor Campos Fernandes at the plenary of the 70th World Health Assembly.
23 May 2017
Groups ask Army to reconsider decision that would allow French firm to charge the US anything it wants on a federally funded Zika vaccine
CONTACT: Zack Struver, zack.struver@keionline.org, +1 (914) 582-1428
Andrew Goldman, andrew.goldman@keionline.org
James Love, james.love@keionline.org, +1 (202) 361-3040