From TRIPS to Access to Medicines

Abstract

This chapter defines the elements of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement that have been having an impact, over the years, on the generic and biosimilar medicine sector and access to the medicines, both in developed and less developed countries. The TRIPS agreement sets minimum standards of Intellectual Property (IP) protection that World Trade Organization (WTO) members need to implement in their legislation. However, in order to address public health and access to medicines issues in developing and less developed countries, the TRIPS agreement includes some exceptions to the minimum standards. The flexibilities in the TRIPS agreement and the need for a balance of rights and obligations seem to derive from the assumption that equality of treatment would be unfair and unjust in certain cases. The future sustainability of the WTO system in relation to the TRIPS Agreement will depend on whether WTO members are willing to put concrete political efforts toward a recalibration of IP policies.