Biden administration to support waiving COVID-19 patents
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai has announced the administration's support for waiving intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines. Waiving patent protections has gained traction, especially among progressives, as COVID-19 continues to spread in countries like India and Brazil.
It's a move that could have a significant impact for pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, and for other countries as most of the world continues to struggle with access to the vaccine. The humanitarian crisis in India as it wages war with the virus has put particular pressure on the U.S. to waive vaccine patents.
The announcement allows for negotiations to begin at the World Trade Organization. Dozens of countries have made a proposal to waive parts of the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. But some wealthier nations, including the U.S., hadn't expressed support for the idea.
"This is a global health crisis, and the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures," Tai said in a statement. "The administration believes strongly in intellectual property protections, but in service of ending this pandemic, supports the waiver of those protections for COVID-19 vaccines. We will actively participate in text-based negotiations at the World Trade Organization needed to make that happen."
Biden administration to support waiving COVID-19 patents
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai has announced the administration's support for waiving intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines. Waiving patent protections has gained traction, especially among progressives, as COVI ...[text shortened]... pate in text-based negotiations at the World Trade Organization needed to make that happen."
Biden doesn't have the ability to unilaterally waive COVID patents. He can withdraw or suspend cooperation in TRIPS, but he can't stop private companies from suing to enforce their patent rights.
The implications of this are pretty staggering. This sets a precedent for similar acts in the future with other life-saving drugs.
Yep, nice as it sounds would it not discourage future investment. I wonder how many have lost millions "trying" to develop a vaccine. Now those that succeed may even lose money.
Just wondering, not sure how this game works.
@jimmacsaid Yep, nice as it sounds would it not discourage future investment.
It would. Drug companies don't invent medicine out of altruism, it's all about profit.
There has to be some kind of middle ground where Big Pharma can profit without making people choose between food and death. But for now, I like this move from Biden.
@sh76said Biden doesn't have the ability to unilaterally waive COVID patents.
I thought the same thing at first; but (so far) this administration doesn't strike me as the type that just announces acts it has no power to follow through on. So I gave it Biden the benefit of the doubt.
@vivifysaid I thought the same thing at first; but (so far) this administration doesn't strike me as the type that just announces acts it has no power to follow through on. So I gave it Biden the benefit of the doubt.
A good example of reading and not understanding. Biden / the US, is going to cast is vote in favour of waiving patents for Covid. Thats all the power they have. There are over 150 member countries, many who will vote in favour of patented Covid drugs.
@vivifysaid I thought the same thing at first; but (so far) this administration doesn't strike me as the type that just announces acts it has no power to follow through on. So I gave it Biden the benefit of the doubt.
They're not claiming the power either.
Notice the language "administration's support." They're not claiming they can do this unilaterally.
To clarify what I said above, the US is a signatory of TRIPS, which member states agree to enforce the patents of member states. The Biden administration can withdraw from TRIPS, at least with regard to the COVAX. It can also encourage Congress to carve an exception to the patent protection. There are also a couple of decades-old federal laws under which they can make patent enforcement uncomfortable or restricted. But they can't unilaterally make a blanket prohibition on patent enforcement and they're not claiming they can.
What if a new variant makes development of a complex booster necessary. If you're Moderna, do you spend a hundred million dollars to develop the booster when you know you're not going to be able to control its production anyway?
@rajk999said A good example of reading and not understanding. Biden / the US, is going to cast is vote in favour of waiving patents for Covid. Thats all the power they have. There are over 150 member countries, many who will vote in favour of patented Covid drugs.
@vivify U.S. tax payers spent around 18 billion on vaccine development. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-23/how-much-is-the-trump-administration-spending-on-a-vaccine
I think that gives the U.S. government the right to waive intellectual property rights so the as many people on the planet as possible get vaccinated as quickly as possible. This is not only a humanitarian crisis. It is a global economic crisis. The longer we wait to vaccinate populations in poor countries, the more likely a variant resistant to the current vaccines will emerge. By the way, those third world countries are impoverished due to rich colonial western countries.
Biden to waive COVID patents
06 May '21 19:57
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