Blog

The latest thoughts from Medicines Law & Policy partners.

Written remarks submitted to the OHCHR following the Expert Workshop on the key challenges...

This blog was submitted by Dr. Katrina Perehudoff, Law Centre for Health and Rights at the University of Amsterdam, and Medicines Law & Policy,...

Brazil’s Federal Court Reviews Medicines Mailbox Patents

This week the media reported that the Brazilian federal court removed the patent protection for eculizumab, sold under the brand name Soliris by Alexion...

Time for new pharmaceutical-innovation models

The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most profitable on earth, expected to be worth $1.4 trillion by the end of 2020. Last year,...

Price, profit and the Covid-19 health technology pool: The example of remdesivir

We cannot yet know the precise trajectory of the Covid-19 pandemic, nor which therapies or vaccines will eventually prove most effective in its treatment...

New WHO-UNITAID briefing paper: Improving Access to Covid-19 Treatments

A new briefing paper based on Medicines Law & Policy research outlines the legal instruments available for countries seeking to access key therapeutics to...

Faced with unreasonable medicines prices, the Netherlands introduces pharmacy exemption in patent law.

On 1 February 2019, article 53(3), second sentence of the Dutch Patent Act 1995 came into force introducing a patent exemption for the preparation...

The Italian Exception – A personalised approach to accessing high-priced patented medicines

At the end of March 2017, the Italian Minister of Health Beatrice Lorenzin has authorised the importation of generic medicines. She did this with...

Trump Administration poses an unprecedented threat to life-saving health programmes 

On his first day in office, US President Trump issued several executive orders, one of which concerns US foreign aid. This order included a...

WHO Fair Pricing Forum: Watching for Drug Industry Accountability

by Katrina Perehudoff and Jennifer Sellin Expensive medicines are a ubiquitous challenge from which no government is immune. Excessive price hikes are an urgent human...

New reports offer evidence for extending the WTO Decision on TRIPS to Covid-19 therapeutics...

In February 2024, the 13th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference will take place. WTO Members are expected to decide whether to extend the...