Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines and Vaccines

Intellectual property and patents have become one of the most debated issues on access to medicines since the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the coming into force of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement). Patents are by no means the only barriers to access to life-saving medicines, but they can play a significant, or even determinant, role. During the term of patent protection, the patent holder’s ability to determine prices, in the absence of competition, can result in the medicines being unaffordable to most people living in developing countries. This chapter aims, in its first part, to introduce key issues in the field of access to medicines and intellectual property. The second part describes and defines some basic terms and concepts of this relatively new area of pharmaceutical policies which are the trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights that regulate the research, development and supply of medicines and health technologies in general.