House Coronavirus Bill Provision Could be Used for COVID-19/Coronavirus-Related R&D without Public-Interest Safeguards

A House coronavirus stimulus bill contains a provision concerning the use of Other Transactions Authority to fund COVID-19 diagnostics. The provision appears to authorize the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to award $2.2 billion to private sector companies to develop… Continue Reading

KEI Letter to Speaker Pelosi Regarding Use of “Other Transaction Authority” (OTA) in Coronavirus Bill to Escape Bayh-Dole Public Interest Safeguards

For more on KEI’s work on COVID-19, see keionline.org/coronavirus. On March 23, 2020, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi regarding a provision in the current draft of the Senate version of the coronavirus funding bill… Continue Reading

WTO TRIPS Council discussions on the transparency of R&D costs and the pricing of medicines: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

In February 2020, the World Trade Organization (WTO) de-restricted the minutes of the TRIPS Council’s October 2019 session. While the official minutes (IP/C/M/93/Add.1) were circulated to WTO members on 9 December 2019, the October 2019 minutes were only available to… Continue Reading

KEI Memo on U.S. Legislation to cap price increases on prescription drugs and to enhance the transparency of R&D costs

On April 30, 2019, KEI issued a memorandum to Congress concerning recent proposed measures to cap drug price increases and to increase the transparency of pharmaceutical research and development costs.  Congress is currently considering several bills that touch on these… Continue Reading

Italy’s Draft WHO resolution: Improving the transparency of markets for drugs, vaccines and other health-related technologies

On 1 February 2019, Dr. Giulia Grillo, Italy’s Minister of Health, sent a letter to Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), with an attached “first draft” of a resolution on “Improving the transparency… Continue Reading