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A nurse vaccinates a person with the Astra-Zeneca Covid-19 vaccine. [Wilberforce Okwiri, Standard]
Activists cheered, Big Pharma complained and government leaders assessed the next steps yesterday after the Biden administration’s blockbuster move to support an easing of patent and other protections on Covid-19 vaccines that many hope will help poorer countries get more doses and speed the end of the pandemic.
The move to support waiving intellectual property protections on vaccines under World Trade Organisation rules marked a dramatic shift for the United States, which had previously lined up with many other developed nations opposed to the idea floated by India and South Africa.
Drugmakers say Joe Biden misguided over vaccine patent waiver
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Last Updated: May 07, 2021, 11:37 PM IST
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Synopsis
If adopted by the World Trade Organisation, the proposal would invite new manufacturers that lack essential know-how and oversight from the inventors to crowd out established contractors, the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA) said.
AFP
Drugmakers on Thursday said U.S. President Joe Biden s support for waiving patents of COVID-19 vaccines could disrupt a fragile supply chain and that rich countries should instead share more generously with the developing world. Biden on Wednesday threw his support behind waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, angering research-based pharmaceutical companies.
US backs waiver of intellectual property protections for vaccines
3 hours 57 minutes 32 seconds ago
Thursday, May 06 2021
May 6, 2021
May 06, 2021 4:33 AM
May 06, 2021
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Source: Associated Press
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GENEVA (AP) Activists cheered, Big Pharma complained and government leaders assessed next steps on Thursday after the Biden administration’s blockbuster move to support an easing of patent and other protections on COVID-19 vaccines that many hope will help poorer countries get more doses and speed the end of the pandemic.
The move to support waiving intellectual property protections on vaccines under World Trade Organization rules marked a dramatic shift for the United States, which had previously lined up with many other developed nations opposed to the idea floated by India and South Africa.
US supports waiving IP for COVID vaccines
6th May 2021
The Biden-Harris Administration has voiced support for waiving intellectual property protections for COVID vaccines, in the hope of ramping up access in low-income countries hit by the virus, marking a u-turn on the US initial opposition to the move.
According to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontierès (MSF), which has applauded the move, the decision by the US government is “an important step towards global support for a World Trade Organization (WTO) waiver on IP”.
“This could provide countries with new options to address the limitations of existing WTO rules and remove legal uncertainties and barriers that may impede production and supply of COVID-19 medical products in advance”.
updated: May 06 2021, 15:16 ist
Sudden US backing for a global waiver on patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines offers hope to poor nations struggling for doses but the big pharma industry thinks the notion misguided.
Some countries see the temporary intellectual property rights waiver as a shortcut to ending the coronavirus pandemic.
But the pharmaceutical industry thinks an IP waiver will not help produce a single dose more this year, and could actually hamper the rush for vaccines by diverting scarce resources to newcomers.
There will undoubtedly be months of negotiations ahead before a consensus can be found at the World Trade Organization in Geneva.