Access Delayed = Access Denied: Free Trade and Peoples’ Struggle for Access to Medicines in Southeast Asia

Another major concern raised by the EU-ASEAN FTA Campaign network against the proposed  EU-Philippines free trade agreement is the impact of its strict intellectual property rights chapter (IPR) on public health and access to medicines.  Health advocates and proponents of the Cheaper Medicines Law (RA 9502) together with trade advocates have come out strongly against provisions in the FTA that would extend patent terms, and effectively delay availability of more affordable generic medicines. Public health should not be subordinated to the agenda of big pharmaceutical companies.