STAT, Andrei Iancu
At this point in the exhausting and deadly Covid-19 pandemic, people around the globe are giving thanks for the multiple vaccines that have been produced and authorized in record time. All governments now share the goal of quick and worldwide vaccination.
To reach this goal, many are latching onto the idea of suspending intellectual property rights for Covid-19 vaccines and medicines, including more than 400 health, labor, religious, and other groups. Late last year, the governments of India and South Africa petitioned the World Trade Organization to waive patent protections for Covid-19 therapies.
To take effect, that proposal would have to be approved by member countries and, so far, the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Japan, and others have withheld their approval. But international organizations, like Doctors Without Borders, as well as a number of U.S. lawmakers, support the call to strip away patent rights for Covid-19 vaccines and therapies. President Biden is reportedly weighing whether to back the waiver.
Proponents of the idea say it would boost vaccine supply and access. The problem is, there is no evidence for this claim.
In fact, the push by India and South Africa appears to be disingenuous, aimed not at curbing the pandemic but at allowing domestic companies to make money off of others’ intellectual property.