Swiss not swayed by US vaccine waiver announcement
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai, at the WTO on April 28 last. 2021 Getty Images
Switzerland has reacted cautiously to the US decision to back a suspension of patents on Covid-19 vaccines, saying a waiver is not the best way to achieve better global supply.
This content was published on May 6, 2021 - 18:52
May 6, 2021 - 18:52
Jessica Davis Plüss
Jessica covers the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to big global companies and their impact in Switzerland and abroad. She’s always looking for a Swiss connection with her native San Francisco and will happily discuss why her hometown has produced some of the greatest innovations but can’t seem to solve its housing crisis.
Covid-19: US backs waiver of patent on vaccines – a proposal first made by India, South Africa
The move will essentially allow more drugmakers to manufacture the vaccines. Representative image. | Brendan Mcdermid/ Reuters
The Joe Biden administration in the United States on Wednesday announced support for waiving patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines.
The move came after the US came under intense pressure to waive protections for vaccine manufacturers, especially amid criticism that rich nations were hoarding Covid-19 vaccines. India and South Africa have been leading the fight within the World Trade Organization to allow more drugmakers to manufacture the vaccines.
“This is a global health crisis, and the extraordinary circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures,” US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement. “The [Biden] administration believes strongly in intellectual property protections, but in service
Covid: Germany rejects US-backed proposal to waive vaccine patents
Published
image copyrightReuters
Germany has voiced opposition to a US-backed proposal to waive patents on Covid-19 vaccines, saying they were not hindering production of the jabs.
Its government said the protection of intellectual property is a source of innovation and must remain so .
The European Union earlier said it was ready to talk about the proposal, and some states gave it their full backing.
Supporters of the plan say it will allow more manufactures to produce the life-saving vaccines.
They argue that this will increase access to jabs in poorer countries.
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As vaccinations continue to roll out around the world we’ve heard plenty of complaints about how some countries are lagging far behind the wealthier nations where most of these vaccines were developed and are being produced. This has resulted in understandable requests for countries like the United States to more quickly begin sending more doses to those nations that are in need. Unfortunately, we’re cranking these vaccines out about as quickly as is physically possible already. One solution that’s been proposed is to allow other companies around the world to start producing their own using the scientific breakthroughs achieved by companies like Pfizer and Moderna, but that would run afoul of their patents and intellectual property rights. Never fear, socialists. President Joe Biden is endorsing a plan put forward by the World Health Organization to simply “pause” those patents and let other companies run with the ball. The American pharmaceutical companies are not
EU considers COVID vaccine patent waiver but Germany, drugmakers push back
By Philip Blenkinsop and Francesco Guarascio
Reuters
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union is willing to discuss a proposal to waive intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday, as drugmakers fought their ground and their share prices slipped.
U.S. President Joe Biden voiced support on Wednesday for a waiver in a reversal of the U.S. position, and his top trade negotiator, Katherine Tai, swiftly endorsed negotiations at the World Trade Organization.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reached for capital letters in a tweet calling Biden s move a MONUMENTAL MOMENT IN THE FIGHT AGAINST #COVID19 , and said it reflected the wisdom and moral leadership of the United States .