Pharmacy Daily | Alphapharm trade pact alert

ALPHAPHARM ceo Martin Cross has warned that a proposed Trans Pacific Partnership between Australia, the USA, Peru, Vietnam and Malaysia could have “a negative impact on the exports of generic drugs as well on the generic pharmaceutical industry as a whole”. The negotiations will build on an existing pact which includes NZ, Chile, Brunei and Singapore. In a submission to the government Cross says that recent trade agreements have included increasing levels of intellectual property protection, without having made “the necessary analysis of their economic impact on consumers as well as on domestic jobs in the generics pharmaceutical industry”. Over the last two decades Australia has extended patent terms, granted extensions and adopted other mechanisms which rather than promoting trade have resulted in “restricting competition and trade and therefore timely access to affordable drugs,” he said. “We believe that Australia should refrain from negotiating new trade agreements that include intellectual property provisions,” the Alphaharm submission says.

---

The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 19 Mar 12
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 19 Mar 12