Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) - Wednesday August 16th, 2006 18:30-20:00, GV Session Hall 2
Another Access to Medicines Crisis Facing Patients: Tackling Increased Patenting and Higher Prices
MSF is an independent medical humanitarian organization providing care and treatment to over 60,000 people living with AIDS in 30 countries. Having provided antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings for over five years, MSF is increasingly confronted with the need to access newer medicines for people with HIV/AIDS who are failing first-line treatment. Access to these newer medicines however is restricted by lack of registration and a lack of generic competition due to increasing patent protection.
Through case studies and a moderated discussion, MSF will present case-studies and offer strategies for tackling the alarming access to medicines crisis. The need for access to newer antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) adapted for use in resource-poor countries is growing rapidly. MSF will use the example of Thailand to demonstrate difficulties of accessing newer ARVs; describe joint advocacy efforts to reduce the impact of increased patent protection in India; and outline its attempt to use patent flexibilities in Canada.
- Losing sight of Doha’s Promises (20 min)
Moderator: Michel Lotrowska, MSF Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines, Brazil. Intro (10 min)
Sources and Prices of Second-Line Treatment
Fernando Pascual, MSF Thailand and Campaign for Access to Essential Medicines (10 min)
- Demanding Newer Medicines in Developing Countries (20 min)
The Need for Second-line Medicines in Thailand
Lawan Sarovat, Deputy Medical Coordinator, MSF Thailand (10 min)
TBC The Need for Patient-Friendly Formulations and the Role of Community Mobilization in Nigeria
Ibrahim Umoru, a patient at MSF’s clinic in Lagos, Nigeria (10 min) TBC
- Overcoming New Barriers: A Tale of Two “Solutions” (20 min)
Community Actions to Challenge Patents in India Post-2005
Kajal Bhardwaj, Indian Lawyers Collective, HIV/AIDS Unit (10 min)
Canada’s Paragraph 6 Legislation: What next?
Rachel Kiddell-Monroe, MSF Canada (10 min)
- Moderated discussion: What now? (20 min)
Brief review of main conclusions and leading question(s) for audience to tackle on three levels of possible advocacy: local, regional and international.
Total: 90 min