The government of Canada has introduced legislation to amend the Patent Act to allow generic drug makers to export less expensive versions of medicines for treating HIV/AIDS and other conditions affecting people in low-income countries. This action has been taken in the context of an amendment to the Agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), one of the World Trade Organization accords. In Doha, Qatar in 2001, WTO members agreed to put development at the centre of the WTO’s concerns when they drew up the Doha Development Agenda. Last year, in the spirit of Doha, WTO members agreed to modify TRIPS so that member countries could bypass patent laws in order to allow the production of generic cost price medicines in the case of public health emergencies in the developing world. Keeping the Doha commitments by amending the Patent Act is one of the most effective ways in which Canada can contribute to the fight against HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases that annually claim 14 million lives.

However, Bill C-9, now before the House of Commons Industry Committee, is seriously flawed. The draft Canadian legislation contains provisions that favour transnational pharmaceutical corporations at the expense of impoverished peoples suffering from AIDS and other treatable diseases. Legal experts assure us that the Bill must be amended if it is to achieve its stated goals and the amendments demanded in the letter below do not contravene Canada’s obligations under the WTO.

Action Required

If you would like to see the legislation amended, please send the following sample letter (augmented if possible with a personal message of concern) to the Chair of the House of Commons Committee on Industry, Science and Technology and copied to the other 15 members of the committee and to the Prime Minister. To send a message, simply copy and paste the following e-mail addresses:

"Brent St. Denis" <St.Denis.B@parl.gc.ca>, "Right Hon. Paul Martin" <Martin.Paul@parl.gc.ca>, "Marlene Jennings" <Jennings.M@parl.gc.ca>, "James Rajotte" <Rajotte.J@parl.gc.ca>, "Gérard Binet" <Binet.G@parl.gc.ca>, "Paul Crête" <Crete.P@parl.gc.ca>, "Joe Fontana" <Fontana.J@parl.gc.ca>, "Jocelyne Girard-Bujold" <Girard-Bujold.J@parl.gc.ca>, "Brian Masse" <Masse.B@parl.gc.ca>, "Andy Savoy" <Savoy.A@parl.gc.ca>, "Hon. Lyle Vanclief" <Vanclief.L@parl.gc.ca>, "Hon. David Collenette" <Collenette.D@parl.gc.ca>, "Hon. Herb Dhaliwal" <Dhaliwal.H@parl.gc.ca>, "Cheryl Gallant" <Gallant.C@parl.gc.ca>, "Hon. Gurbax Malhi" <Malhi.G@parl.gc.ca>, "Grant McNally" <McNally.G@parl.gc.ca>, "Carol Skelton" <Skelton.C@parl.gc.ca>

Ideally messages should be sent as soon as possible, as the committee will enter final deliberations in March. Persons wishing to take further action are urged to meet with their MPs, especially if they are members of the Industry Committee, when they are in their home ridings during a House of Commons recess during the week of March 1.

- Sample Letter -

March 1, 2004

Mr. Brent St. Denis, M.P.
And Members of the House of Commons
Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology
House of Commons
Ottawa K1A 0A6

Re: Bill C-9 An Act to Amend the Patent Act and the Food and Drugs Act

Dear Mr. St. Denis and Committee Members,

According to UNAIDS some 6 million people living in low-income countries require treatment for HIV/AIDS but only 300,000 are currently receiving life-saving medicines mainly due to the high cost of antiretroviral drugs. Moreover, some 8 million people in low-income countries die each year from other treatable diseases including sleeping sickness, diarrhoea, respiratory infections and asthma, in part because they cannot afford medicines.

The federal government is to be commended for introducing Bill C-9, following amendments to the WTO’s TRIPS agreement. The Bill has the potential to help remedy this situation by making lower cost generic medicines available to persons living in low-income countries. In our view, this step is entirely consistent with Canada’s WTO commitments, as stated in the Doha Ministerial Declaration, in which WTO members agreed to put development at the centre of the agenda of the Doha Round. However, as drafted, the Bill contains several serious flaws.

First and foremost is the clause that gives patent owners the right to take over a contract that a Canadian generic manufacturer has negotiated with a purchaser in a developing country. Legal experts concur that a "right of first refusal" is not needed to comply with WTO rules. If this clause is not removed the noble intent of the Bill will be negated as there will then be no incentive for a Canadian generic firm to negotiate a contract in the first place. This right to take over contracts must be removed if Bill C-9 is to serve the millions of impoverished people it is supposed to benefit instead of protecting the interests of transnational pharmaceutical companies.

Secondly, there is no need for the legislation to include a specific list of qualifying medicines since developing countries should be free to determine which medicines they need to import. This is especially true in the case of medicines to treat HIV/AIDS since some of the combination antiretroviral drugs recommended by the World Health Organization do not appear on the list.

Thirdly, the Bill, as currently drafted, does not allow non-governmental groups such as Médicins Sans Frontières to import generic medicines from Canada. The Bill should be amended to permit non-governmental groups as well as governments to purchase medicines from Canadian firms.

Finally, the Bill, as drafted, excludes some countries that are not members of the World Trade Organization from its benefits. There is no reason why nations such as Vietnam, East Timor and Lebanon should be excluded just because they have not joined the WTO.

We urge you to amend this well-intentioned but flawed legislation so that we Canadians can proudly stand as the first developed country to provide low-cost medicines to millions of people who now needlessly suffer and die for lack of affordable drugs. This would be the logical step to take in order to ensure that we fulfill our Doha Development Agenda obligations.

Sincerely,

Cc
Right Honourable Paul Martin M.P., P.C.
Marlene Jennings M.P.
James Rajotte M.P.
Gérard Binet M.P.
Paul Crête M.P.
Joe Fontana M.P.
Jocelyne Girard-Bujold M.P.
Brian Masse M.P.
Andy Savoy M.P.
Hon. Lyle Vanclief M.P.
Hon. David Collenette M.P.
Hon. Herb Dhaliwal M.P.
Cheryl Gallant M.P.
Hon. Gurbax Malhi M.P.
Grant McNally M.P.
Carol Skelton M.P.