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How can we ensure equitable access to COVID-19 products? It is critical that treatments, vaccines and diagnostics developed for COVID-19 reach all those who need them.
This question was debated in parliament last week. Here are some highlights.
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This question was debated in parliament last week. Here are some highlights.
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The UK has highlighted the need for equitable access to COVID-19 technologies. However, they are also pre-ordering more than their fair share of future COVID-19 vaccines.
Since there will be limited supplies at least initially, this is the equivalent of hoarding.
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Since there will be limited supplies at least initially, this is the equivalent of hoarding.
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@wendychambLD highlighted that the UK has pre-ordered more than 10% of potential future doses of COVID-19 vaccines, despite making up only 1% of the global population.
This means that other countries will go without.
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This means that other countries will go without.
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To maximise global supply, MPs highlighted that we cannot allow intellectual property rights, such as patents, from blocking access to these lifesaving tools.
More on how patents block access here: https://capx.co/the-case-against-patents-for-covid-19-medical-tools/
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More on how patents block access here: https://capx.co/the-case-against-patents-for-covid-19-medical-tools/
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MPs pushed the government to support a landmark global waiver on IP rights, which would enable countries to ignore patents and other IP barriers, and scale-up manufacturing of COVID-19 technologies on the scale needed to meet global needs.
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MSF and other groups are calling on the UK government to support this IP waiver.
Read our briefer on the IP waiver: https://msfaccess.org/sites/default/files/2020-10/COVID_Brief_ProposalWTOWaiver_ENG_2020.pdf
And our letter to the UK government: https://msfaccess.org/joint-uk-civil-society-letter-uk-government-calling-support-india-and-south-africas-wto-waiver
Take action here (via @JustTreatment): https://actionnetwork.org/letters/stop-big-pharma-monopolies
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Read our briefer on the IP waiver: https://msfaccess.org/sites/default/files/2020-10/COVID_Brief_ProposalWTOWaiver_ENG_2020.pdf
And our letter to the UK government: https://msfaccess.org/joint-uk-civil-society-letter-uk-government-calling-support-india-and-south-africas-wto-waiver
Take action here (via @JustTreatment): https://actionnetwork.org/letters/stop-big-pharma-monopolies
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