NPR's "Morning Edition" today reports on the World Trade Organization's unanimous agreement on Saturday on a deal to allow developing countries import generic versions of patented medicines from countries that produce the generic drugs, such as India or Brazil, without violating patent rights (Silberner, "Morning Edition," NPR, 9/3). The three-page "chairman's statement" agreed to on Saturday allows a country to issue a "compulsory license" to import generic drugs if it confirms that it "has insufficient or no manufacturing capacities in the pharmaceutical sector for the product(s) in question." The policy says that the system "should be used in the good faith to protect public health and ... not be an instrument to pursue industrial or commercial policy objectives." In addition, the statement says that "all reasonable measures," such as the use of special packaging and different drug coloring, should be made to prevent the reimportation of generic drugs into wealthy countries (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 9/2). The NPR segment includes comments from Dr. Amir Attaran of the Center for International Development at Harvard University, WTO spokesperson Keith Rockwell and Global AIDS Alliance Executive Director Paul Zeitz ("Morning Edition," NPR, 9/3).

The full segment will be available online in RealPlayer after noon ET.

Back to other news for September 3, 2003