Partial Revocation Of EPO Patent On Sofosbuvir, Key For Hepatitis C 05/10/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments Following a public hearing at its headquarters in Munich, the European Patent Office (EPO) decided to reject in part the arguments made by Gilead Sciences to uphold their patent on sofosbuvir, according to a non-profit group.
UNITAID-FIND Partnership To Scale Up Hepatitis C Diagnostics 04/10/2016 by Alexandra Nightingale for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Initiating a new partnership today, global health initiative UNITAID and the non-profit FIND began a project that will work towards the improvement, affordability and availability of diagnostics and treatments for the hepatitis C virus (HCV).
Free Trade Agreements Should Promote Generic Competition, Speakers Say At WTO 04/10/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The emphasis placed on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property for medicines in trade negotiations is ignoring the distorting effects of this emphasis, such as the lack of competition incentives which are key to reduce medicines prices, speakers on a panel of generic drug industries said at the World Trade Organization Public Forum last week.
Clinical Trial Reporting Biased; Full Disclosure, Transparency Needed, Speakers Say 30/09/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments A conference on clinical drug trials held today shed a harsh light on the availability and honesty of clinical trial reports. Many factors concur to possible distortion of results, speakers said, calling for more stringent obligations to provide all data for analysis. They also noted legislative efforts to tackle the issue. Speakers also pointed out a growing trend for pharmaceutical companies to conduct clinical trials in developing countries.
UN Panel Report On Access To Medicines Seen As Holding Potential For Change 29/09/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment NEW YORK – Speakers at a side event to the United Nations General Assembly last week commended a new report on access to medicines prepared by a high-level panel hand-chosen by the UN secretary general as containing fresh ideas and the potential to bring change to a longstanding problem.
Europe Dominates List Of Candidates For Next WHO Director 23/09/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Health Organization today released the list of candidates to be the next director general of the UN health agency in Geneva. Of the six candidates, four are from the European region.
Against ‘Grave Challenge To Achievements Of 20th Century’, UN Agrees Political Declaration On Antibiotic Resistance 22/09/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment NEW YORK — The membership of the United Nations today agreed a political declaration on antimicrobial resistance, elevating the global fight against overuse and misuse of antibiotics – and lack of new antibiotics – to the highest political level. The declaration struck by world leaders at the UN General Assembly in New York includes mention of separating medicine prices from the cost of research and development, and calls on the UN secretary-general to create an interagency coordination group. Now – as framed by many governments, intergovernmental organisations and nongovernmental representatives – attention moves to implementation of actions aimed at staving off this threat to humanity itself.
Antimicrobial Resistance A ‘Global Societal Challenge And Threat’, WHO Official Says 16/09/2016 by Alexandra Nightingale for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Antimicrobial resistance had in the last decades emerged as a health issue, but only in the last couple of years has there been an understanding that we are facing a “global societal challenge and threat.” On a day-to-day basis, people worldwide are said to be driving resistance across human health and agriculture.
Delinkage Of R&D Costs From Product Prices 15/09/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments It is essential that policy makers reform the systems for financing R&D, and de-link the costs of R&D from the prices of products, says James Love.
MSF Report Calls On Governments To Repair, Remodel Biomedical R&D 15/09/2016 by Alexandra Nightingale for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Governments are urged to do more to promote the development of desperately-needed new medicines, vaccines, and diagnostics at affordable prices and address the failures of research and development (R&D) in a new report by Médecins Sans Frontières.