Patent Exception for Exports for Health Needs

Patent Exception for Exports to Address Health Needs

November 6, 2002. DIRECTIVE 2001/83/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL, AMENDMENT 196.

CPTech Documents

June 24, 2002. Quotes from joint press conference with Ofam, the Third World Network, and Medicins Sans Frontieres.
May, 2002. James Love for Briges Between Trade and Sustainable Development. (Year 6, no. 4) Access to Medicines: Solving the Export Problem under TRIPs.
January 28, 2002. Joint letter from Consumer Project on Technology, Essential Action, Medicines Sans Frontieres, Oxfam International, Health GAP Coalition, and the Third World Network to the World Trade Organization's TRIPS Council.
September 27, 2000. Consumer Project on Technology, European Public Health Alliance, Health Action International, Oxfam UK, Wemos Foundation and ACT-UP Paris. Letter to EC Commissioners Lamy and Nielson.

WTO Documents

WTO TRIPS Agreement Here is the text of Article 30:
Article 30
Exceptions to Rights Conferred
Members may provide limited exceptions to the exclusive rights conferred by a patent, provided that such exceptions do not unreasonably conflict with a normal exploitation of the patent and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the patent owner, taking account of the legitimate interests of third parties.
June 28, 2002. WTO press release. Council approves LDC decision with additional waiver.
November 20, 2001. World Trade Organization. Declaration on the TRIPS agreement and public health. Article 6 of this document reads:
6. We recognize that WTO members with insufficient or no manufacturing capacities in the pharmaceutical sector could face difficulties in making effective use of compulsory licensing under the TRIPS Agreement. We instruct the Council for TRIPS to find an expeditious solution to this problem and to report to the General Council before the end of 2002.
Text of the TRIPS Agreement
WTO Intellectual Property Page

World Health Organization Documents

September 17, 2002. Statement by the representative of the World Health Organization at the WTO Council for TRIPS

National Positions on TRIPS and Access to Medicines, Post Doha

Government Documents
- June 25, 2002. A Second Communication from the United States of America relating to paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on The TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.
- June 24, 2002. Joint Communication from the African Group in the WTO. Proposal on Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.
- June 24, 2002. USTR press release. US Announces Framework to Increase Access to Drugs to Fight HIV/AIDS and other Public Health Crises.
- June 18, 2002. Communication from the European Communities and Their Member States to the TRIPS Council Relating to Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health. (Also see the press release about this document.)
- No date. Submission to WTO by Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, China, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Venezuela. Paragraph 6 of tthe Ministerial Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.
- February 1, 2002. Communication from the European Communities and their Member States to the TRIPS Council. Concept Paper for Approaches Relating to Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.
- September 18, 2001. Submission by the African Group, Bangladesh, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Pakistan, Paraguay, Philippines, Peru, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Venezuela. Ministerial Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.
News Stories
- October 18, 2002. Reuters. WTO countries fail to heal split on patented drugs.
- July 6, 2002. Fiona Fleck for the British Medical Journal. "Foot dragging" by the West threatens drugs deal for poorer countries.
- July 1, 2002. Daniel Pruzin for BNA's WTO Reporter. WTO Members Approve Deadline Extension For LDCs on Protecting Intellectual Property.
- June 25, 2002. Reuters. EU, U.S. Accused of Backing Out of AIDS Drug Pledge.
- June 25, 2002. Geoff Winstock for the Wall Street Journal. Europe Officials Support Purchase Of Generic AIDS Drugs for the Poor: AIDS activists complain that it isn't doing enough.
- June 25, 2002. Elizabeth Olson for the New York Times. U.S. Backs New Trade Rules on Drugs.
- June 25, 2002. South African Press Association. Full Access to Generics for the Poor?

NGO Documents

September 24, 2002. Letter from 20 religious leaders to US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick.
June 29, 2002. Cecilia Oh for the Third World Network. The Problem With Paragraph 6.
June 26, 2002. Ellen t'Hoen, Medicins Sans Frontieres. Why Article 30 Will Work. Why Article 31 Will Not.
June 25, 2002. Ellen t-Hoen and Pierre Chirac op-ed published in Le Monde Diplomatique. Don't renege on Doha.
May 23, 2002. IP-Health message from James Love on Doha Paragraph 6: WTO in Canadian "Bolar" case on legitmate interests of foreign consumers importance of economies of scale.
June 21, 2002. Joint press release by 13 Canadian NGOs. Global health crises: Will the G8 act? Canadians call for action to save lives, condemn efforts to limit access to medicines in developing countries
May 2, 2002. Ibis Denmark, the Danish Association for International Co-operation, K.U.L.U – Women and Development and the Labour Movement’s International Forum. Comments on the European Commissions "Concept paper for approaches relating to paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPs agreement and public health".
May 1, 2002. Trans-Atlantic Consumer Dialogue. letter to President Bush. This letter addresses the TACD positions on GMOs and trade in services as well as access to medicines and article 30 exports.
March 5, 2002. ACT-UP Paris press release. The European Commission Reneges on Commitments Made at Doha.
February 15, 2002. Trans-Atlantic Consumer Dialogue letter to USTR Zoellick and EC Commissioner of Trade Lamy concerning implementation of the Doha Declaration. Also see the press release on this letter.
February, 2002. Fred Abbott for the Quaker United Nations. Compulsory Licensing for Public Health Needs: The TRIPS Agenda at the WTO after the Doha Declaration on Public Health.
November 13, 2001. Act-Up Paris, ACT UP Philadelphia, ACT UP New York, Health GAP Coalition Press Release. WTO Declaration on TRIPS and Health--the fight is not over.

Pharmaceutical Industry Position

October 18, 2002. Inside US Trade. PhRMA Looks to Limit Countries, Diseases Subject to New TRIPS Flexibilits.
March, 2002. Eric Noehrenberg for the IFPMA newsletter Pharma Policy News. WTO Update - TRIPS Council.
April 28, 1999. Canadian Drug Manufacturers Association policy brief. Public Hearings on Canadian Interests in Forthcoming World Trade Organization WTO Negotiations.

US Legislation

Text of the bill (pdf format)
Summary of the Bill from Rep. Brown's office.

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