Agencies urge end to global trade restrictions on essential medicines

doi:10.1136/bmj.319.7223.1455

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Gavin Yamey

Intellectual property rights that protect drug patents, enforced by the World Trade Organisation, are preventing access of essential medicines to the developing world, warned an international coalition of health and legal professionals at a conference in Amsterdam last week.

Groups including the medical relief organisation Médecins Sans Frontiàres are calling on the World Trade Organisation to strengthen its provisions to help developing countries in bypassing patent law.

Patent protection of drugs can prevent poor countries from producing cheaper local …