Search Climate Insights Directory

The document argues that the US uses bilateral and regional free trade agreements (FTAs) to implement "TRIPS-plus" intellectual property standards that undermine the 2001 Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health. These provisions—including data exclusivity, patent term extensions, and restrictions on compulsory licensing—increase drug prices and delay generic competition, thereby hindering access to essential medicines in developing countries. The author suggests that civil society should raise public awareness in both negotiating countries and the US, engage ministries of health, and advocate for a WTO moratorium on TRIPS-plus provisions. Furthermore, the paper argues for shifting the global discourse from intellectual property protection to a health-needs-driven R&D model, citing evidence that high IP standards have not significantly boosted research for diseases predominantly affecting the developing world.