TPP: The patient at the losing end

By Dr Nicola Davies

The balance between the need to incentivize drug developers to make innovative drugs and the need to provide affordable treatment is no mean feat. Many governments, including that of the United States, publically assert the importance of striking such a balance.

However, recently leaked information about a chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations that concerns intellectual property (IP) rights, reveals that the balance may soon be tipped closer towards one where Big Pharma benefits to a greater extent than patients and taxpayers.