Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Delhi once again on 2 March 2011, in protest over the planned Free Trade Agreement between India and the European Union (EU) which will restrict access to life-saving medicines.Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Delhi once again on 2 March in protest over the planned Free Trade Agreement between India and the European Union (EU) which will restrict access to life-saving medicines. Photo credit: Mudit Mathur
Issue brief |

Trading Away Health: What to Watch Out for in Free Trade Agreements

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND TRADE
India
Access_Briefing_WhattoWatchFTAs_ENG_2013.pdf
Photo credit: Mudit Mathur

Generic competition saves lives.  High medicine prices hurt patients and restrict the capacity of governments and other treatment providers to respond to medical needs.  India’s contribution to the health of the developing world cannot be underestimated.  

Current and future free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between India and certain developed countries threaten to tighten the screws on the production and export of affordable essential medicines so that they are once more priced out of reach. 

This briefing document details some of the FTAs being negotiated which threaten to limit the production of affordable medicines in India and their use across the developing world.  It sets out the provisions of FTAs which threaten access to medicines and MSF’s recommendations.