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Science | Citizenship | Relationships and health

Prince and Pope back vaccine patent waiver

Should vaccine patents be suspended? Yesterday Prince Harry and the Pope separately said it would dramatically boost supplies to poorer countries and backed Joe Biden’s proposal. At vaccine centres across America, the queues are dwindling. The drive-throughs are empty, the volunteers are beginning to go home. So far, one in four people in high-income countries are vaccinated against Covid-19. The Western world feels safe at last. But elsewhere, a different story is playing out. In poor countries, where just one in 500 have had the jab, vaccines are like gold dust. Thousands of people are still dying every day. Now, the US has joined South Africa, India and 100 developing nations to support a radical plan to end vaccine inequality. Together, they are calling on the World Trade Organisation to overturn the patents on Covid-19 vaccines. “This is the only humane thing in the world to do,” declared US President Joe Biden. “There is something morally objectionable about rich countries being able to get that vaccine, and yet billions of people in poor countries are unable to afford it,” agreed Senator Bernie Sanders. So what are patents, and why do they exist? Patents protect the rights of companies over products they have invented. When a patent is awarded to a pharmaceutical firm, this makes it illegal for other manufacturers to make cheap copycat versions of medicines for up to 20 years. Pharmaceutical bosses insist patents are not about greed. Making a new drug is astronomically expensive. The average cost for just one drug is £935m - roughly equivalent to the entire yearly GDP of San Marino. Moreover, 90% of new medicines are never actually approved by regulators - for drug firms, this means money poured down the drain. Scientists point out that if every drug was immediately copied for free by competitors, companies would never make their money back. Eventually, they would stop investing in research, and new medicines would never be made. “Those seeking to weaken patent protections could inadvertently harm the very patients they’re trying to help,” says American academic Jon Soderstrom. Joe Biden’s decision has shocked many. The US - home to pharmaceutical giants like Pfizer - has long supported patent rules. In the 1990s, when campaigners called for the removal of patents on HIV drugs, America stood firm. US officials refused to use aid money to buy cheap Indian copycat versions for African countries, despite the continent’s growing AIDS crisis. So why has America changed its mind now? Activists say the Covid-19 vaccine is just too important to wait. When a Volvo engineer invented the three-point seat belt in 1959, the Swedish company chose to make their patent available immediately, saving thousands of lives. But drug manufacturers point out that vaccines are not like seat belts, or even other medicines. Vaccines are hugely complicated. Releasing the patents would not suddenly enable developing countries to produce the jabs. “You could get the recipe from Mary Berry for the loveliest cake you can imagine,” declared lobbyist Thomas Cueni. “But if you try to replicate that cake, good luck.” Are patents on vaccines wrong? Profits over people? Of course, say some. It is outrageous that companies are allowed to limit the production of vaccines. Nobody is suggesting overturning all patents on all medicines. The Covid-19 crisis is a unique and time-sensitive scenario. Developing countries cannot wait 20 years to produce cheap vaccines. All pharmaceutical firms should help factories across the world make their vaccines and save lives now. It is not so simple, say others. Drugs companies are not solely motivated by profit - AstraZeneca is producing their coronavirus vaccine at cost until July at the earliest. Firms rely on patents to recoup the enormous costs of producing vaccines and other medicines. If the WTO sets a new precedent now, scientists may not have the resources to develop vaccines in a future pandemic. KeywordsComplicated - Difficult.

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