Network for Monitoring the Impact of Globalization and TRIPS on Access to Medicines, Meeting Report, 19-21 February 2001, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand - Health Economics and Drugs Series No. 011: 3. 1 Globalization, TRIPS and Access to Pharmaceuticals: Key requirements of the TRIPS Agreement: Public health and TRIPS

Network for Monitoring the Impact of Globalization and TRIPS on Access to Medicines, Meeting Report, 19-21 February 2001, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand - Health Economics and Drugs Series No. 011
(2002; 67 pages)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
	Steering Committee
	Acknowledgements
2. Highlights of opening address of Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi
3. ¹Globalization, TRIPS and Access to Pharmaceuticals
	A new era in global trade
	WTO Agreements
	Implementation and dispute settlement
	Key requirements of the TRIPS Agreement
		Patent protection
		Rights conferred
		Transitional arrangements
		Public health and TRIPS
		Patentability
		Generic drugs
		Compulsory licensing
		Parallel imports
		TRIPS-plus provisions
		Non-WTO Members
		Evaluating impacts of trade agreements
	WHO Perspectives on Access to Drugs
		Access to health is a human right
		Patents are an effective stimulator of research and development
		Affordability of essential drugs is a public health priority
		Countries must develop informed approaches to health and trade
4. Further Reading
5. Template of selected model indicators for studying the impact of globalization and TRIPS on access to medicines
6. Selected indicators for studying the impact of globalization and TRIPS on access to medicines
	Respondent data
	Contents
		I. Definitions used in the template**
		II. Trends in total pharmaceutical consumption
		III. Health care coverage
		IV. Structure of public and private pharmaceutical prices
		V. Regulations relating to intellectual property rights protection and marketing authorization
		VI. Prices of pharmaceutical products
		VII. Market share of domestic and foreign firms
		VIII. Regulation of pharmaceutical consumption - A stakeholder analysis
7. The Collaborating Centres

Public health and TRIPS

International conventions before TRIPS did not specify minimum standards for patents. Over 40 countries provided no patent protection for pharmaceuticals, many provided only process and not product patents, and the duration of patents was much less than 20 years in many countries.

From the health sector’s perspective, intellectual property standards, including those specified in TRIPS, should take protection of public health into account. However, current standards - historically derived from those of developed countries - are not necessarily appropriate for countries struggling to meet health and development needs. Developing countries can therefore use the flexibility of TRIPS provisions and its safeguards to protect public health.