UNITAID Publishes Full Report On Health Implications Of TPP

By Julia Fraser for Intellectual Property Watch

UNITAID has published the full version of its report on “The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement: Implications for Access to Medicines and Public Health.” The report finds a possible negative public health impact of the agreement under negotiation.

The report is available on the UNITAID website here [pdf].

The report looks at sections of the proposed texts of the TPP relating to patents, pharmaceutical products as a regulated product, trademarks, copyright, enforcement of IP rights and investment, among others.

The study assessed the impact the proposed provisions are likely to have on global public health and access to medicines, and provides recommendations.

“The analysis in this report supports the view that the TPPA, if adopted, will have major implications for public health and access to medicines,” says the report. It will “restrict the adoption of policy options for developing countries to ensure that trade or commercial interests do not hinder the protection of health and human development.”

The executive summary of the report was published earlier this year (IPW, Public Health, 26 February 2014).