Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
13 September 2002
http://www.phrma.org
NEW
UK INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COMMISSION REPORT ADDS LITTLE TO DEBATE,
SAYS PHRMA
A new
report by the Commission on Intellectual Property Rights, an independent
group advising the United Kingdom's Secretary of State for International
Development, sheds little new light on the challenges facing developing
countries in seeking to meet the real public health needs of their
citizens or achieving their economic development goals, the Pharmaceutical
Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) said today. " By
embracing a 'one-size fits all' approach to intellectual property
rights for the developing world, the report fails to provide any prescriptions
that will help patients, " said PhRMA Senior Vice President,
International Affairs, Shannon S.S. Herzfeld. "The Commission
began with a false premise - that intellectual property protection
impedes economic development efforts and forces a transfer of wealth
from poor nations to the rich. Clearly this is at odds with mainstream
economic theory."
Our industry
operates on the front lines, Herzfeld explained. The public-private
partnerships between research-based pharmaceutical companies and developing
countries are helping bring needed modern medicines to patients throughout
the developing world.
"The
greatest barriers to better health in those countries are poverty,
ignorance, corruption and neglect. Through partnerships, we are working
to overcome those obstacles," she said.
"Countries
at every stage of development benefit from protecting the intellectual
capital of their people, " said Herzfeld. "No part of the
world has a monopoly on good ideas. Intellectual property rights insure
that the benefits of a novel idea flow to the inventors, no matter
where they might live. Respect for intellectual property rights helps
developing countries build their economies and improve public health
for their people."